Dr. Wamhoff, selected as one of the PharmaVOICE 100 most inspiring people in the industry, is co-founder of HemoShear and served as head of innovation and chief operating officer before being appointed as interim CEO. He co-invented HemoShear’s REVEAL-TX^TM platform, which enabled the company to launch proprietary drug discovery programs in several rare diseases. HemoShear’s development of human models of the vascular system and liver diseases was achieved in part by Dr. Wamhoff’s role in securing significant NIH Small Business Innovation Research funding from five NIH institutes. His passion and scientific vision have fueled the formation of productive partnerships with Takeda and Horizon. As a former associate professor at the University of Virginia, he co-founded multiple medical device and therapeutics companies. He has authored or co-authored 70 papers and has been issued 18 patents. Dr. Wamhoff obtained a B.S. in biology with a minor in business administration from Rhodes College, where he was the 2011 Distinguished Alumnus; he received his Ph.D. in medical physiology from the University of Missouri.

After practicing 20 years as a pediatrician, Dr. Patrick Horn has spent more than two decades leading successful clinical programs for large and small biotech companies. Most recently, he served as chief medical officer for Albireo Pharma, where he led the team that achieved accelerated marketing approvals in the US and Europe for Bylvay^TM in progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis (PFIC). He also designed and initiated pivotal clinical development programs in biliary atresia and Alagille syndrome.  Prior to Albireo, he led clinical development programs in hereditary angioedema, homocystinuria, and infectious disease. Dr. Horn has formal training and extensive experience in clinical pharmacology. He received his MD and PhD from the University of Chicago and completed a pediatric residency at Boston Children’s Hospital. Prior to transitioning to industry, Dr. Horn was a practicing pediatrician at major academic institutions in Chicago.

Dr. Brian A. Johns joined HemoShear following a prolific 20-year career with GSK, where he co-invented Tivicay® (dolutegravir), one of the most widely prescribed antivirals on the market for HIV, currently being used by millions of patients worldwide. Dr. Johns is also co-inventor of the long acting injectable integrase inhibitor cabotegravir, currently under FDA review as a monthly HIV treatment. Dr. Johns spent the past four years working closely with Professor David Margolis as co-director of the UNC HIV Cure Center and Qura Therapeutics, a biotech partnership between ViiV Healthcare and UNC with the mission to find a cure for HIV.  Along with his extensive experience from early discovery though phase 2 clinical development, Dr. Johns has authored or co-authored 50 peer reviewed journal articles and is an inventor on approximately 70 patent applications. He received a PhD in Organic Chemistry from Wayne State University and was an NIH Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Virginia.

Mr. Innes brings more than 20 years of healthcare investment banking and corporate finance experience to HemoShear. He has completed more than 40 transactions in healthcare and the life sciences, including strategic partnerships, mergers & acquisitions and capital raises. His capital raising transactions have included venture capital, private and public equity, senior/subordinated debt and royalty monetizations. In 2016, Mr. Innes formed Pilot Health Advisors to provide advisory services to corporate and institutional clients in the life sciences. Prior to PHA, Mr. Innes served as Managing Director in the Healthcare Investment Banking Group at Morgan Joseph TriArtisan, LLC. Earlier in his career, he was a member of the Healthcare Investment Banking groups at Wachovia Securities (now Wells Fargo Securities) and Raymond James & Associates. Mr. Innes earned a BSE in civil engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from the Darden School at the University of Virginia.

Prior to joining HemoShear, Mr. Holsinger was Chief Financial Officer of education technology company Cricket Media, where he led the company through a public offering and ultimately returned to private status. Previously Mr. Holsinger held CFO and VP Finance positions with MCT, a cellular telecommunications provider in Russia and Central Asia; the Baltimore Stallions, a franchise in the Canadian Football League; and the Baltimore Orioles.  Mr. Holsinger began his career with Arthur Andersen in Washington, DC and received his B.S. degree in accounting and management information systems from the University of Virginia.

Dr. Hayes has more than 25 years of experience in research and development of innovative therapeutics for rare diseases and cancer. Through 2015, he was Senior Vice President of Regulatory Affairs and Pharmacovigilance at Synageva Biopharma prior to their acquisition by Alexion Pharmaceuticals, where he led efforts to support the approval of Kanuma for lysosomal acid lipase deficiency, and provided strategic regulatory leadership for additional rare disease pipeline products. Prior to Synageva, Dr. Hayes was Group Vice President of Regulatory Affairs at Genzyme, where over 11 years he led the regulatory function for oncology and biosurgery as well as CMC regulatory organization for all therapies. Prior to joining industry, Dr. Hayes served at FDA for over 9 years at the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, where he conducted independent research in cytokine biology and managed the review of numerous recombinant proteins. Dr. Hayes received a B.S. from Davidson College and holds a Ph.D. in immunology and experimental pathology from the University of Florida.

Mavis Waller is a clinical research professional with 34 years of biopharmaceutical and contract research organization experience.  She joins HemoShear to provide expertise, strategy and oversight to the company’s clinical trial program. She has managed complex global studies involving up to 35 countries and 500 sites. Ms. Waller has held various positions within data management, clinical monitoring and project management. Prior to joining HemoShear, she served as a member of a governance team at Syneos Health directing a large portfolio of rare disease studies. On the portfolio, she was also responsible for directing a team that achieved a challenging milestone of first patient enrolled three months from protocol finalization. In addition to rare diseases, Ms. Waller has been involved in a range of therapeutic areas including gastrointestinal diseases, oncology and vaccines. She has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia. 

Dr. Emile J. Velthuisen joined HemoShear following 16 years in the pharmaceutical industry spanning Bayer Pharmaceutics, GSK, and ViiV Healthcare. He has extensive experience in medicinal chemistry, drug discovery, sustained-release parenteral drug delivery, and designing IND-enabling strategies. Emile is a co-inventor on approximately 30 patent applications and has a proven track record of delivering novel molecules in the development of new medicines, including five clinical candidates and two FTIH studies. He received his Ph.D. in chemistry at the University of California, Irvine and was a postdoctoral fellow at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

Mr. Qureshi brings 23 years of pharmaceutical legal, transactional, regulatory, and compliance experience to HemoShear. Prior to joining HemoShear, Mr. Qureshi spent 13 years with the Novartis Group, working in each of its divisions, including five years in Novartis’ Worldwide Ophthalmology where he helped in-license and launch a rare gene therapy. Mr. Qureshi brings a unique perspective to global pharmaceutical and life sciences organizations that require tangible results through transparent infrastructure, outcomes-focused operating models, expedited clinical trial development, commercial routes to market, prudent risk management, team building and technology. Mr. Qureshi received his BS in Biology from Vanderbilt University, an MS in Physiology from the Medical College of Virginia and his Juris Doctor from Vermont Law School. He is licensed to practice in Virginia and Texas.

Dr. Simmers brings over 17 years of scientific expertise developing tools and in vitro organ systems for the HemoShear technology.  During this time, he co-developed novel systems of the human vasculature, liver, and tumor microenvironment.  Dr. Simmers held various roles within the organization, including leading commercial scientific studies, developing new technologies, overseeing laboratory operations and managing HemoShear’s intellectual property portfolio.  He authored several scientific publications and was issued multiple patents related to in vitro human organ systems. Dr. Simmers earned a B.S. and Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from the University of Virginia and an MBA from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.

Dr Sartori has a 35+ year career including serving as a global VP/EVP and/or Chief Human Resources Officer for major firms such as CIBA-Corning, Novartis, Bausch & Lomb, PAREXEL and Covance. He also has wide ranging experience serving as a VP for Organization Development, and Advisor to the CEO and Board for developing companies, from pre-clinical stage to commercial, and across pharma, biotech, diagnostics and medical devices. Before joining HemoShear, Paul served as VP for Cavion which was acquired by Jazz in 2019. Paul has extensive experience with the building of executive teams, as well as in executive recruiting both as an independent executive recruiter and managing senior searches for his firms. His corporate experience includes marketing, communications, HR and government and public affairs. Paul has a BA from Northeastern University, and earned a MA in Teaching History, a PhD in Education and an MBA from the University of Virginia. He currently serves on the Advisory Board for the Children's Hospital at UVA.