About

About

Basking Biosciences is focused on improving the treatment of acute thrombosis, with acute ischemic stroke being its lead clinical indication. Basking’s BB-031 program is based on two decades of research on the use of RNA aptamers as therapeutic agents for cardiovascular diseases conducted by company founders Bruce Sullenger, Ph.D., of Duke University Health System, and Shahid Nimjee, M.D., Ph.D., of The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.

Leadership Team

Richard Shea

Richard Shea, MBA

Chief Executive Officer

Rob Hughes, MBA

Chief Financial Officer

bruce

Bruce Sullenger, Ph.D.

Founder and Scientific Advisor

Shahid Nimjee, M.D., Ph.D.

Founder and Chief Medical Officer

leo

Leo Pavliv, R.Ph., MBA

Head of CMC

Michael-Hill

Michael Hill, M.D.

Clinical Program Advisor

stacy-nelson

Stacy Nelson

Head of Development Operations

Steven Gillis, Ph.D.

Chairman of the Board

Richard Shea

Richard Shea, MBA

Chief Executive Officer

Shahid Nimjee, M.D., Ph.D.

Founder and Chief Medical Officer

Ari Nowacek, M.D., Ph.D.

ARCH Venture Partners

Thomas

Thomas Needham, MBA

Broadview Ventures

Aiden

Aiden Aceves, Ph.D.

Insight Partners

Hannah Chang, M.D., Ph.D.

Platanus

David Adair, M.D., MBA

Solas BioVentures

Joseph P. Broderick, M.D.

Bruce Campbell, M.D., Ph.D.

Richard Becker, M.D.

Pooja Khatri M.D., M.Sc.

Michael-Hill

Michael Hill, M.D.

Robert Harrington, M.D.

Ashutosh Jadhav, M.D., Ph.D.

Tudor Jovin, M.D.

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Richard Shea

Richard Shea, MBA

Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Shea joined Basking Biosciences as CEO shortly after its founding in 2019. He is an experienced life sciences entrepreneur and has been involved in the creation and growth of multiple life science start-up and growth companies for over the last 20 years. He began his career at Merck. Rich received his MBA from Duke and his B.S. from the University of Notre Dame. Prior to attending Duke, Rich served for 5 years as a Submarine Officer in the U.S. Navy.

Rob-Hughes

Rob Hughes, MBA

Chief Financial Officer

Rob is an accomplished financial executive with over 25 years of experience, with considerable experience in building and guiding small, growing life science companies. He brings an in-depth understanding of corporate finance and has expertise in strategic planning, fund raising, financial analysis and reporting, mergers and acquisitions, budgeting and risk management. Prior to Basking, he held leadership roles at Stridebio, Selentity Therapeutics and Viamet Pharmaceuticals. Rob is a CPA and holds a B.S. from the University of Maryland, where he double majored in Finance and Accounting. He also holds an MBA from the University of North Carolina.

bruce

Bruce Sullenger, Ph.D.

Founder and Scientific Advisor

Professor Sullenger is the Joseph W. And Dorothy W. Beard Distinguished Professor of Experimental Surgery and the Founding Director of the Translational Research Institute at Duke University. Professor Sullenger is a globally recognized expert in RNA biology. Over the last 20 years, his research has been focused on the generation and clinical translation of RNA aptamers that block proteins involved in cardiovascular diseases and immune modulation. Professor Sullenger has over 25 issued U.S. patents related to RNA therapeutics.

Shahid Nimjee, M.D., Ph.D.

Founder and Chief Medical Officer

Shahid Nimjee, M.D., Ph.D., is a Professor and practicing neurosurgeon at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center (OSUWMC) where he treats stroke patients. Dr. Nimjee also leads a basic research laboratory at OSUWMC that is focused on evaluating anti-vWF aptamers and their antidotes to treat thromboembolic stroke. At Basking, Dr. Nimjee serves as the Company’s Interim CMO responsible for leading preclinical research activities at his laboratory at OSUWMC and designing the clinical trial plan for BB-031 and BB-025. Shai received his undergrad degree from Yale and his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from Duke.

leo

Leo Pavliv, R.Ph., MBA

Head of CMC

Mr. Pavliv is a seasoned drug developer with over 30 years of experience developing pharmaceutical and biological products. He is a Principal at PharmDev Consulting and is leading Basking’s CMC activities, including vendor selection and oversight. Mr. Pavliv has been responsible for more than 100 IND submissions and amendments, clinical trial agreements (CTAs), clinical trial exemptions (CTXs) and more than a dozen marketing and supplemental applications. Mr. Pavliv received an MBA and BS in Pharmacy from Rutgers University.

Michael-Hill

Michael Hill, M.D.

Clinical Program Advisor

Dr. Michael Hill is a Professor for the Departments of Clinical Neurosciences, Community Health Sciences, Medicine and Radiology at the University of Calgary and Director of the Stroke Unit for the Calgary Stroke Program, Alberta Health Services. Dr. Hill’s research interests include stroke thrombolysis, stroke epidemiology, and surveillance and clinical trials. During his career, Dr. Hill has led many multinational trials in stroke.

stacy-nelson

Stacy Nelson

Head of Development Operations

Drug Development Professional with over 25 years’ experience managing multidisciplinary projects involving regulatory, Phase 1-3 clinical trials, CMC, and post-marketing pharmacovigilance according to GCP, GMP and ICH regulations. Direct experience in the preparation and attendance at regulatory agency meetings; preparation of Investigational New Drug Applications (INDs) and 6 New Drug Applications (NDAs); and initiation and management of over 25 Phase 1 and Phase 2 multicenter clinical trials spanning the therapeutic areas of oncology, blood products, COVID-19, metabolism, gene transfer in cardiovascular diseases and neurology.

Steve Gillis, Ph.D.

Chairman of the Board

Dr. Gillis joined ARCH as a Venture Partner in 2005 and became a Managing Director in 2006. He is focused on the evaluation of new life science technologies and on the development and growth of ARCH’s biotechnology portfolio companies.

He is a director of Homology Medicines (FIXX), 48 Inc., Pheast Therapeutics, beBio, Sonothera, Dispatch Bio, and Carrick Therapeutics. He serves as director and Chairman of Faraday Pharmaceuticals, eGenesis, HiberCell, hC Bioscience, Skylark Bio, Walden Biosciences, OncoResponse, Mozart Therapeutics, Bitterroot Bio, Vilya, TFC Therapeutics, Proniras, and VBI Vaccines (VBIV). Dr. Gillis also serves as a director of Takeda Pharmaceuticals (TAK).

Dr. Gillis was a founder and director of Corixa Corp. and served as CEO from its inception and as its Chairman from 1999 until its acquisition in 2005 by GlaxoSmithKline. Prior to Corixa, Dr. Gillis was a founder and director of Immunex Corp., the most successful venture-funded biotech company in the state of Washington. From 1981 until his departure in 1994, he served as Immunex’s Director of Research and Development, Chief Scientific Officer, and as CEO of Immunex’s R&D subsidiary. Dr. Gillis was interim CEO of Immunex Corp. following its majority purchase by American Cyanamid Co. and remained a member of the board until 1997. Amgen, Inc. acquired Immunex in 2002.

Dr. Gillis is an immunologist by training with over 300 peer-reviewed publications in the areas of molecular and tumor immunology. He is credited as being a pioneer in the field of cytokines and cytokine receptors, directing the development of multiple marketed products including Leukine, (GM-CSF), Prokine (IL-2) and Enbrel (soluble TNF receptor-Fc fusion protein) as well as the regulatory approval of Bexxar (radiolabeled anti-CD20).

Dr. Gillis received a B.A. from Williams College and a Ph.D. from Dartmouth College.

Richard Shea

Richard Shea, MBA

Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Shea joined Basking Biosciences as CEO shortly after its founding in 2019. He is an experienced life sciences entrepreneur and has been involved in the creation and growth of multiple life science start-up and growth companies for over the last 20 years. He began his career at Merck. Rich received his MBA from Duke and his B.S. from the University of Notre Dame. Prior to attending Duke, Rich served for 5 years as a Submarine Officer in the U.S. Navy.

Shahid Nimjee, M.D., Ph.D.

Founder and Chief Medical Officer

Shahid Nimjee, M.D., Ph.D., is a Professor and practicing neurosurgeon at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center (OSUWMC) where he treats stroke patients. Dr. Nimjee also leads a basic research laboratory at OSUWMC that is focused on evaluating anti-vWF aptamers and their antidotes to treat thromboembolic stroke. At Basking, Dr. Nimjee serves as the Company’s Interim CMO responsible for leading preclinical research activities at his laboratory at OSUWMC and designing the clinical trial plan for BB-031 and BB-025. Shai received his undergrad degree from Yale and his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from Duke.

Ari Nowacek, M.D., Ph.D.

ARCH Venture Partners

Ari Nowacek, M.D., Ph.D., is a Partner with ARCH Venture Partners, joining the company as an Analyst in March 2015. Dr. Nowacek focuses on identifying and evaluating new life sciences technologies and is involved in company creation. He helped form ROME Therapeutics, Walden Biosciences, HiberCell, Arbor Biosciences, and TFC Bio. He also serves as a board member or observer on Synchron, Basking Biosciences, and Ultivue.

Dr. Nowacek is a physician-scientist by training. He holds a B.S. in Biology and a B.S. in Psychology from the University of Indiana-Bloomington where he graduated Magna Cum Laude and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He also holds an M.D. and Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska Medical Center and an MBA from the University of Nebraska-Omaha. He has 20 peer-reviewed publications in the areas of neuroscience, virology, antiretroviral therapeutic development, and immune oncology. He subsequently completed a medical residency in pathology and post-doctoral research at The University of Chicago and Massachusetts General Hospital.

Thomas

Thomas Needham, MBA

Broadview Ventures

Tom Needham, MBA, is a Director and Head of the Biopharmaceuticals practice at Broadview Ventures.

Tom shares responsibility for all aspects of Broadview’s investment activity, from identification and screening of new opportunities, through due diligence, negotiation of deal structure, and portfolio company board involvement.

Tom has 30 years of experience in venture capital, business development, corporate strategy, and C-suite executive management responsibilities in public and private life science companies. Prior to joining Broadview Ventures, Tom was most recently Chief Business Officer at Merrimack Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: MACK) and Senior Vice President, Business Development at C4 Therapeutics (NASDAQ: CCCC).

Prior to C4T, Tom spent 13 years as a venture capital investor, most recently as a Managing Director at Synthesis Capital, where he was involved in the management of two healthcare venture funds focused on investments in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and medical technology. Prior to Synthesis, Tom was a Principal at Advent International, a global private equity firm, as a member of the healthcare venture capital deal team in Boston. Earlier in his career, Tom held Vice President of Business Development positions at private and public biotech companies where he led the negotiation and closing of a number of strategic transactions, including R&D partnerships with global pharmaceutical companies, licensing and M&A transactions.

Tom currently serves on the boards of Basking Biosciences, including serving as Chairman (2020 thru 2023), and Antag Therapeutics, as well as holds board observer roles at Comanche Bio and HAYA Therapeutics. Previously, Tom served on the board at Renovacor (NYSE: RCOR, acquired by Rocket Pharma), including serving as Chairman (2019 thru 2021), and held board observer roles at NIDO Surgical (acquired), and Cardero Therapeutics (now Epirium Bio). Tom’s prior investment experience as a member of the Synthesis Capital and Advent International venture teams also included working on Astex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ASTX, acquired by Otsuka), Enanta Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ENTA), MD Everywhere (acquired by Marlin Equity Partners), Sirion Therapeutics (trade sale to Alcon and Bausch & Lomb) and Aegerion Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: AEGR).

Tom holds a B.A. from Bowdoin College and an MBA from Babson College’s F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business.

Aiden

Aiden Aceves, Ph.D.

Insight Partners

Aiden Aceves, Ph.D., is a Vice President on the investments team at Insight. He joined the firm in 2021 to focus on investments in therapeutics and enabling technologies. Aiden was previously an associate at Vida Ventures, where he worked in the firm’s LA office making investments in innovative cell and gene therapy companies. Prior to becoming an investor, Aiden worked on founding and operating biotechnology companies in San Diego California, where he is based. 

Aiden currently holds board roles at ten companies on behalf of Insight Partners, spanning diverse therapeutic areas and development stages.

Aiden traces his academic lineage to Caltech, where he earned his doctorate in the lab of Dr. Steven Mayo, a leader in the space of computational protein engineering. Aiden received his B.S. in synthetic chemistry from the University of California, Riverside.

Hannah H. Chang, M.D., Ph.D.

Platanus 

Hannah H. Chang, M.D., Ph.D., is a Managing Director at Platanus, a global evergreen investment fund. Dr. Chang leads the firm’s healthcare venture capital strategy, investing in innovative biotechnology companies with transformative therapeutic potential. Representative investments include Semma Therapeutics (acquired by Vertex Pharmaceuticals), Akouos (NASDAQ: AKUS, acquired by Eli Lilly), Korro Bio (NASDAQ: KRRO), Inipharm, and Nuvig Therapeutics.

She was previously an investment professional at 5AM Ventures where she helped found IDEAYA Biosciences (NASDAQ: IDYA) and served as a Board Observer for Crinetics Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: CRNX), among others. Earlier in her career, Dr. Chang was a Project Leader at The Boston Consulting and a member of the Healthcare Practice in their Boston office.

Dr. Chang currently holds board roles at Ray Therapeutics, Inc., Nuvig Therapeutics, Inc., IniPharm Pharmaceuticals, and Basking Biosciences.

Dr. Chang obtained her M.D. from the Harvard-MIT Program in Health Sciences and Technology, Ph.D. in Biophysics from Harvard University, and B.A. in Chemistry from Princeton University. Her research has been published in Nature, Lancet, and Physical Review Letters. Dr. Chang trained clinically in internal medicine and ophthalmology at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, respectively. She is a licensed physician in the District of Columbia.

David Adair, M.D., MBA

Solas BioVentures

David (“Dave”) Adair, M.D., MBA, Co-Founded Solas BioVentures based upon the desire to bring much needed innovation to the patient’s bedside. This patient centric focus came from his long academic medical career providing care and solutions to leverage the healthcare equation of Value = Quality /Cost. He has operated a startup MedTech, co-founded a large regional medical specialty group, as well as grown angel investing into a full fledge venture fund targeting MedTech, pharma, diagnostics, and special healthcare situations. Dave was the Southeast Medical Device Association member of the year in 2017. He has served on Life Science Tennessee Association Board previously.

He is a widely published author with over 100 published articles and a frequent speaker to academic venues throughout the U.S. and E.U. He retired as professor emeritus from the University of Tennessee College of Medicine in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. His prior board experience is notable for Veran Medical acquired by Olympus Medical, NxThera acquired by Boston Scientific, Aegea Medical (Chair) acquired by Cooper Surgical, Aerial BioPharma acquired by Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Knopp biosciences acquired by Biohaven and a stand-alone spin out, Aretia Therapeutics. Dave currently serves on the board of Arrivo BioVentures, Francis Medical, Intershunt Technologies, NX Prenatal, Stimdia Medical, Inc., Vesalio, and Basking Biosciences.

Dave earned a B.S. in Biology from Morehead State University, where he is in the Alumni Hall of Fame. A medical doctorate from The Joan C Edwards School of Medicine of Marshall University, where he was recognized as the Distinguished Alumnus in 2020. He completed his residency in Obstetrics & Gynecology from The University of Florida, and fellowship training in Maternal Fetal Medicine from Wake Forest University, and earned the first Healthcare MBA from The Gary W. Rollins College of Business of The University of Tennessee Chattanooga. He is triple board certified in Obstetrics & Gynecology, Maternal Fetal Medicine, and Hypertension.

Joseph P. Broderick, M.D.

Joseph P. Broderick, M.D., is Professor of Neurology and Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and Director of the University of Cincinnati Gardner Neuroscience Institute. Dr. Broderick is an internationally recognized expert on the treatment and underlying causes of stroke. He currently is the Principal Investigator of the National Coordinating Center for the U.S. NIH funded network of stroke trials.

Bruce Campbell, M.D., Ph.D.

Professor Campbell, the head of stroke care at Royal Melbourne Hospital, is regarded as a leading international expert in stroke research and practice implementation. His research interests are focused on the imaging and treatment of acute stroke and he was co-principal investigator and medical coordinator of the EXTEND-IA and EXTEND-IA TNK multi-center randomized trials published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2015 and 2018. He co-chairs the World Stroke Organization Young Stroke Professionals Committee.

Richard Becker, M.D.

Richard Becker, M.D., is Professor of Medicine and Director, Heart, Lung and Vascular Institute at The University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and an Adjunct Professor of Medicine at the Duke University School of Medicine. His experience as a physician-scientist spans the molecular, mechanistic and drug development perspectives of cardiovascular disease. He has served on multiple industry sponsored Scientific and Clinical Advisory Boards focused on the development of anti-thrombotic drugs and reversal agents.

Pooja Khatri M.D., M.Sc.

Pooja Khatri M.D., M.Sc. is Professor of Neurology and Director of the Stroke Team at University of Cincinnati. She has had over 15 years of federal and industry funding, and specific expertise in developing stroke reperfusion therapies from conception to post-marketing. She co-directs the National Coordinating Center for the U.S. NIH StrokeNet.

Michael-Hill

Dr. Michael Hill

Clinical Program Advisor

Dr. Michael Hill is a Professor for the Departments of Clinical Neurosciences, Community Health Sciences, Medicine and Radiology at the University of Calgary and Director of the Stroke Unit for the Calgary Stroke Program, Alberta Health Services. Dr. Hill’s research interests include stroke thrombolysis, stroke epidemiology, and surveillance and clinical trials. During his career, Dr. Hill has led many multinational trials in stroke.

Robert Harrington, M.D.

Dr. Harrington served as president of the American Heart Association (AHA) for 2019-20. He is a world-renowned interventional cardiologist and clinical investigator in the area of heart disease and Arthur L. Bloomfield Professor of Medicine and Chairman of the Department of Medicine at Stanford University.

Ashutosh Jadhav, M.D., Ph.D.

Ashutosh Jadhav, M.D., Ph.D., is a vascular and interventional neurologist at Barrow Neurological Institute. serves on the AHA Stroke Council. Dr. Jadhav’s research focuses on acute ischemic stroke and has published more than 200 peer-reviewed articles. Dr. Jadhav has served on the steering committee on numerous randomized controlled trials as well as site principal investigator of multiple clinical trials investigating new strategies for stroke treatment. He is the founding Editor-in-Chief of Stroke: Vascular and Interventional Neurology.

Tudor Jovin, M.D.

Dr. Jovin is an expert in the interventional and non-interventional treatment for the entire spectrum of stroke and cerebrovascular disorders. He has served as principal investigator for several international clinical studies including REVASCAT, a randomized trial of endovascular therapy versus medical therapy for acute stroke within eight hours of symptoms onset conducted in Spain, and DAWN, a multicenter, international, randomized trial of endovascular therapy versus medical therapy in the beyond eight-hour time window. Both studies are considered landmark studies in the development of treatments for acute stroke and have been published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The consequential nature of his research is evidenced by recently published studies that have identified Dr. Jovin as the highest impact author in the neuro-interventional field.