Board Committees

J. Kevin Buchi has been a Director since April 2013. Mr. Buchi previously served as Chief Executive Officer of BioSpecifics Technologies Corp. and of TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals Corporation. Mr. Buchi served as Chief Executive Officer of Cephalon, Inc., or Cephalon, from December 2010 through its acquisition by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd in October 2011. After the acquisition Mr. Buchi served as Corporate Vice President, Global Branded Products of Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. Mr. Buchi joined Cephalon in 1991 and held various positions, including Chief Operating Officer, from January 2010 to December 2010, Chief Financial Officer and Head of Business Development prior to being appointed Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Buchi is also on the board of directors of Amneal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE: AMRX) and Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: DRNA. Mr. Buchi has a B.A. in chemistry from Cornell University and a Masters in Management from Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. He is also a Certified Public Accountant.

Peter Francis has been a director since February 2006 and was previously Chairman of the Board until October 2017. Since 1993, Mr. Francis has been a partner at Francis Abourizk Lightowlers, a firm of commercial and technology lawyers with offices in Melbourne, Australia. He is a legal specialist in the areas of intellectual property and licensing and provides legal advice to corporations and research bodies. Mr. Francis completed his studies in law and jurisprudence at Monash University.

Edward Smith has been a director since April 2020. Edward brings more than 20 years of experience in executive finance and operations leadership in the biotechnology industry to our Board. Edward served as the Chief Financial Officer of LAVA Therapeutics N.V. (Nasdaq: LVTX), a clinical stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing novel immuno-oncology therapeutics. Prior to that, he served as Chief Financial Officer of Marinus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: MRNS), a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing innovative therapeutics to treat patients suffering from rare seizure disorders, and PolyMedix, Inc., a clinical stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing a novel class of antibiotics for the treatment of infectious diseases. Before his time at PolyMedix, Inc. he served as the executive director of finance at InKine Pharmaceutical Company, Inc. and held various positions in public accounting, most recently in the audit practice of Deloitte.

Peter Francis has been a director since February 2006 and was previously Chairman of the Board until October 2017. Since 1993, Mr. Francis has been a partner at Francis Abourizk Lightowlers, a firm of commercial and technology lawyers with offices in Melbourne, Australia. He is a legal specialist in the areas of intellectual property and licensing and provides legal advice to corporations and research bodies. Mr. Francis completed his studies in law and jurisprudence at Monash University.

J. Kevin Buchi has been a Director since April 2013. Mr. Buchi previously served as Chief Executive Officer of BioSpecifics Technologies Corp. and of TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals Corporation. Mr. Buchi served as Chief Executive Officer of Cephalon, Inc., or Cephalon, from December 2010 through its acquisition by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd in October 2011. After the acquisition Mr. Buchi served as Corporate Vice President, Global Branded Products of Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. Mr. Buchi joined Cephalon in 1991 and held various positions, including Chief Operating Officer, from January 2010 to December 2010, Chief Financial Officer and Head of Business Development prior to being appointed Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Buchi is also on the board of directors of Amneal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE: AMRX) and Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: DRNA. Mr. Buchi has a B.A. in chemistry from Cornell University and a Masters in Management from Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. He is also a Certified Public Accountant.

Edward Smith has been a director since April 2020. Edward brings more than 20 years of experience in executive finance and operations leadership in the biotechnology industry to our Board. Edward served as the Chief Financial Officer of LAVA Therapeutics N.V. (Nasdaq: LVTX), a clinical stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing novel immuno-oncology therapeutics. Prior to that, he served as Chief Financial Officer of Marinus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: MRNS), a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing innovative therapeutics to treat patients suffering from rare seizure disorders, and PolyMedix, Inc., a clinical stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing a novel class of antibiotics for the treatment of infectious diseases. Before his time at PolyMedix, Inc. he served as the executive director of finance at InKine Pharmaceutical Company, Inc. and held various positions in public accounting, most recently in the audit practice of Deloitte.

Peter Francis has been a director since February 2006 and was previously Chairman of the Board until October 2017. Since 1993, Mr. Francis has been a partner at Francis Abourizk Lightowlers, a firm of commercial and technology lawyers with offices in Melbourne, Australia. He is a legal specialist in the areas of intellectual property and licensing and provides legal advice to corporations and research bodies. Mr. Francis completed his studies in law and jurisprudence at Monash University.

J. Kevin Buchi has been a Director since April 2013. Mr. Buchi previously served as Chief Executive Officer of BioSpecifics Technologies Corp. and of TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals Corporation. Mr. Buchi served as Chief Executive Officer of Cephalon, Inc., or Cephalon, from December 2010 through its acquisition by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd in October 2011. After the acquisition Mr. Buchi served as Corporate Vice President, Global Branded Products of Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. Mr. Buchi joined Cephalon in 1991 and held various positions, including Chief Operating Officer, from January 2010 to December 2010, Chief Financial Officer and Head of Business Development prior to being appointed Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Buchi is also on the board of directors of Amneal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE: AMRX) and Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: DRNA. Mr. Buchi has a B.A. in chemistry from Cornell University and a Masters in Management from Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. He is also a Certified Public Accountant.

Edward Smith has been a director since April 2020. Edward brings more than 20 years of experience in executive finance and operations leadership in the biotechnology industry to our Board. Edward served as the Chief Financial Officer of LAVA Therapeutics N.V. (Nasdaq: LVTX), a clinical stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing novel immuno-oncology therapeutics. Prior to that, he served as Chief Financial Officer of Marinus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: MRNS), a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing innovative therapeutics to treat patients suffering from rare seizure disorders, and PolyMedix, Inc., a clinical stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing a novel class of antibiotics for the treatment of infectious diseases. Before his time at PolyMedix, Inc. he served as the executive director of finance at InKine Pharmaceutical Company, Inc. and held various positions in public accounting, most recently in the audit practice of Deloitte.