Chief Operating Officer
Acuitas Therapeutics

As Chief Operating Officer for Acuitas Therapeutics, Abi Coman-Walker develops and oversees the organization’s operational, finance and corporate/business strategy. A qualified accountant (ACMA), Ms. Coman-Walker brings extensive leadership experience to her role at Acuitas, having spent more than 16 years in senior positions for HSBC in seven countries.

Ms. Coman-Walker took the leap from banking to biotechnology to provide strategic leadership in support of the company’s exceptional growth and her alignment to Acuitas’ values and purpose.

Along with her business leadership and commitment to operational excellence, Ms. Coman- Walker is key to the development of a positive workplace culture at Acuitas. She creates immersive opportunities for the team to contribute to their communities and guides the organization’s commitment to inclusion, equality, equity, diversity and accessibility

Head
Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JLABS Canada

Dozie Amuzie is the head of Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JLABS Canada and is responsible for external engagement, innovation sourcing, company onboarding, portfolio management, operational excellence, educational programming and profit and loss management. He catalyzes and supports the translation of science and technology into valuable solutions for patients and consumers across the pharmaceutical, medical device, consumer, and health tech sectors.

Dozie completed executive education for investor board participation at the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business, and has experience serving on boards, review or advisory committees of several life science or health care-based organizations or governmental entities around the world. He has served on boards or advisory committees for Society of Toxicology, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, Ontario Provincial Government in Canada, Abia State Government in Nigeria, Michigan Innovates and My Village Health.

Before joining Johnson and Johnson Innovation-JLABS, Dozie lead the North American nonclinical Pathology function at the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, where he drove discovery and project pathology efforts. Dozie and his team supported the acquisition and internal discovery of over 20 biopharmaceutical entities across 10 modalities from early discovery to clinical development, and some up to approval. Dozie has initiated and led the cross-functional efforts such as the oligonucleotide working group that shaped strategies for RNAi therapies in discovery. He was a critical driver for understanding the pathobiology of bispecific antibodies in discovery and development, while supporting Amivantamab, Teclistamab, and Talquetamab.

Dozie earned a dual-major Ph.D. in Comparative Medicine and Integrative Toxicological Sciences at Michigan State University and completed a residency in Veterinary Pathology at Michigan State. He also received a D.V.M from University of Nigeria and is a Diplomate with American Board of Toxicology, as well as a Diplomate of American College of Veterinary Pathologists.

Dozie’s family loves oceans and lakes, with a special connection to the Great Lakes, and are diehard Michigan State Spartans. When Dozie is not thinking about new innovations for patients, he enjoys watching football and basketball with friends and family and supporting local sports teams.

President, Genomic Medicine
Cytiva

Emmanuel Abate works to bring out the best in his team so they can better serve the scientific community working on the next medical breakthrough. The Genomic Medicine business includes solutions to help advance the discovery and manufacturing of viral vector, cell therapies, and nucleic acid-based therapies. Emmanuel also leads the company-wide Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility strategy.

Emmanuel’s career began in 1999 with GE Healthcare, where he worked in business development and eBusiness. He earned his MBA in 2004 and joined the Boston Consulting Group from 2004-2007, based in Paris. When he returned to GE Healthcare in 2007, he served in product and commercial leadership positions for Interventional Imaging, Women’s Health Imaging, and Radiology.

In 2018, Emmanuel became the General Manager of Genomics and Cellular Research, when the business was part of GE Healthcare Life Sciences, now Cytiva.

Emmanuel was appointed to his current position in September 2022.

Emmanuel is inspired by the hundreds of scientists, specialists, and technicians working on the instruments and consumables that accelerate the development of diagnostics and therapies.

Emmanuel has a passion for the natural world, and in his role as Head of Corporate Social Responsibility he is driven to make a difference in leading company-wide sustainability initiatives. The role also involves continuous improvement in the way the company looks after customers and associates and enables positive societal change.

Emmanuel lives in Paris with his wife and son.

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Chief Scientific Officer, CCRM
University of British Columbia

Peter Zandstra graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering degree from McGill University in the Department of Chemical Engineering, obtained his Ph.D. degree from the University of British Columbia (UBC) in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology and continued his research training as a Post Doctoral Fellow in the field of Bioengineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Peter is the Chief Scientific Officer for CCRM, the Founding Director of the School of Biomedical Engineering at UBC, and the Director of the Michael Smith Laboratories at UBC. Peter holds an academic appointment as a Professor at the University of Toronto’s Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering. Peter is the Canada Research Chair in Stem Cell Bioengineering and is a recipient of a number of awards and fellowships including the Premiers Research Excellence Award (2002), the E.W.R. Steacie Memorial Fellowship (2006), the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship (2007), Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 (2008), the University of Toronto’s McLean Award (2009) and the Till and McCulloch Award (2013). Peter is also a fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Royal Society of Canada.

Peter’s research focuses on understanding how complex communication networks between stem cells and their progeny influence self-renewal and differentiation, and how this information can be applied to the design of novel culture technologies capable of controlling cell fate.
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President & Chief Executive Officer
CCRM

Dr. Michael May completed his PhD in Chemical Engineering at the University of Toronto in 1998 as an NSERC Scholar and was awarded the Martin Walmsley Fellowship for Technological Entrepreneurship.

He is President and Chief Executive Officer of CCRM. Prior to CCRM, Michael was the President and co-founder of Rimon Therapeutics Ltd., a Toronto-based tissue engineering company developing novel medical polymers that possess drug-like activity.

Michael sits on a number of boards and advisory committees including: the ARM Foundation for Cell & Gene Medicine; AgeX Corporation; panCELLa Inc.; CCRM Enterprises; the International Advisory Board of the Swedish Centre for Advanced Medical Products (CAMP); the Poietis SAB; the Entrepreneurship Leadership Council at the University of Toronto; the Cell and Gene Therapy Insights, Editorial Advisory Board; the Commercialization Committee of the International Society for Cell and Gene Therapy; He is the Chairman of ExCellThera Ltd.
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Managing Director and Senior Biotechnology Analyst
JMP Securities

Founder & CEO
Akron Biotechnology

Claudia Zylberberg, Ph.D., is a leader in regenerative medicine. She is the founder and CEO of Akron Biotechnology, a leading developer and manufacturer of cGMP-grade ancillary materials and a purveyor of specialized services to cell and gene therapy developers, contract development and manufacturing organizations, and tissue engineering companies, among others. Under Dr. Zylberberg’s leadership, Akron has received grants from the Department of Defense (DoD) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), as well as two Manufacturing USA Institutes, the National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals (NIIMBL) and the Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute (ARMI). She also co-founded AssureImmune, an adult stem cell bank. Dr. Zylberberg has developed various patented and patent-pending technologies, including cryopreservation media, oligonucleotides, and recombinant protein formulations, and has coauthored numerous academic articles in high-impact publications.

Dr. Zylberberg has engaged in several multi-stakeholder initiatives to formalize and strengthen the regenerative medicine industry. She co-founded the Standards Coordinating Body (SCB) and has supported the development of critical standards promoted by International Organization for Standardization (ISO). She holds advisory positions at the International Society for Cellular Therapy (ISCT), the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine (ARM) Foundation, the Florida Organization for Regenerative Medicine (FORM), and the National Academy of Science’s (NAS) Regenerative Medicine Forum, among others.