The BioHub - by Avetix

Amir Inamdar is the Chief Medical Officer at Cybin Inc., bringing more than 20 years of clinical medicine and drug-development experience. Prior to joining Cybin, Amir held senior roles in industry including Senior Medical Director for R&D Neurosciences at AstraZeneca, Medical Director at Takeda Development Centre Europe Ltd., and Director of Clinical Pharmacology & Discovery Medicine at GlaxoSmithKline. He's led global teams in advancing novel therapies across indications such as treatment-resistant depression, narcolepsy, anxiety, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and substance-use disorders — and steered compounds from preclinical development through first-in-human and proof-of-concept studies

Today I’m joined by Dena House - Chief People Officer atAdverum Biotechnologies.Dena’s career has spanned some of the world’s leading life sciences companies, from Nikon Precision to Myriad Genetics, but what stands out is her passion for building strong, intentional culture in complex organizations.At Adverum, she was brought in with a clear mission: buildthe kind of people-first culture that can power innovation, resilience, and long-term growth, even in one of biotech’s toughest markets.We talk about how she tackled that challenge, what greatculture actually looks like in biotech, and why this work matters more now than ever.Let’s get into it.

We were delighted to welcome Baruch Harris, Chief Operating Officer at Pretzel Therapeutics, a company dedicated to translating mitochondrial biology into transformative therapies. Dr. Harris’s journey spans from rigorous scientific roots to strategic leadership — he holds a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from UCSF and a degree in Biophysics from Brown University. Before joining Pretzel, he led business development, operations, and fundraising efforts at companies including ROME Therapeutics, Yumanity Therapeutics, Metera Pharmaceuticals, and Enlight Biosciences. In our conversation today, we’ll explore how Pretzel is tackling mitochondrial dysfunction as a therapeutic target, the unique operational challenges of scaling a biotech platform grounded in mitochondrial biology.

Welcome back to another episode of The BioHub, we were delighted to welcome on Abid Ansari, Chief Financial Officer at General Oncology, a clinical-stage biopharma company focused on first-in-class therapies for metastatic cancer. With more than two decades of experience in the biotechnology and life sciences sectors, Abid has built his reputation as a strategic finance executive who bridges capital, innovation, and growth. Over his career, he’s led major capital raises — including a $153 million Series C at Artios and a $146 million IPO at Precision BioSciences — and driven business development deals, licensing agreements, and M&A transactions. Earlier in his journey, Abid held roles at GSK in deal finance and portfolio management, contributing to high-stakes transactions such as the acquisition of Bristol Myers Squibb’s HIV portfolio and licensing agreements with Adaptimmune

I’m joined by Dr. Paul Song, Chairman & CEO of NKGen Biotech.Paul has led across biotech, from CMO at NKGEN to co-founding Fuse Biotherapeutics and since 2022 he’s been driving NKGen’s mission to harness natural killer cells through their proprietary SNK platform for neurodegenerative diseases and cancer.In this episode, we dive into his decision to return and lead NKGen, the science behind the SNK platform, the company’s recent SPAC merger and NASDAQ listing, and his perspective on building resilient biotech companies in today’s market.Enjoy and stay tuned.

On this episode we had the pleasure of featuring Roy Maute of Pheast Therapeutics.Pheast are unleashing the power of macrophages in oncology, starting in advanced solid tumours & Ovarian Cancer. Their pipeline consists of novel innate immune checkpoint inhibitors (incl. Anti-CD24), based on research out of Irv Weissman's lab at Stanford. In this episode we cover the inspiration behind Roy's career in oncology R&D & the origins of Pheast's name & platform, before moving onto Pheast's recent (FTD, ph1 entry) and upcoming milestones. We also cover their big ambitions for the future & how their huge focus on culture as a business has & continues to shape their journey.

Today, we're joined by Dr. Tatiana Novobrantseva, the Chief Scientific Officer at NextPoint Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotech company pioneering precision immuno-oncology therapies targeting the novel HHLA2 (B7-H7) pathway.Tatiana brings over two decades of expertise in immunology, cancer, immuno-oncology, autoimmunity, and fibrosis. She co-founded Verseau Therapeutics in 2017, serving as CSO and advancing novel immunotherapies that stimulate macrophage repolarization to initiate anti-cancer immune responses. Prior to that, she led oncology discovery and development projects at Moderna as Chief Scientific Officer, Immuno-Oncology Research.At NextPoint, Tatiana is leading the development of therapies targeting the B7-H7 immune checkpoint pathway, aiming to reactivate exhausted T and NK cells in solid tumors. This approach offers a promising alternative for patients who have not responded to traditional PD-1/CTLA-4 therapies.Dr. Novobrantseva earned her Ph.D. in immunology from the University of Cologne in Germany and completed postdoctoral research at Harvard Medical School in the laboratory of Dr. Klaus Rajewsky, focusing on B cell immunology and autoimmunity

Welcome back to another episode of The BioHub, we weredelighted to welcome on Nick Manusos, the CEO of Kenai Therapeutics, a pioneering biotech company developing neuron replacement therapies for neurological disorders. Nick’s journey spans decades of innovation and leadership—from senior roles at global pharma giants like Baxter, Takeda, and Abbott, to founding and leading cutting-edge startups like Iota Biosciences and Opsis Therapeutics. Under his guidance, Kenai Therapeutics has secured groundbreaking funding and is advancing life-changing therapies for patientswith Parkinson’s disease. He holds an MBA from Northwestern University’sKellogg School of Management and a BBA from the University of Wisconsin, bringing a rare combination of business acumen and scientific vision to the table. Nick joins us today to share his insights on pioneering stem celltherapies, building biotech startups from the ground up, and what it takes to turn cutting-edge science into real-world solutions.

Today’s guest is someone who’s seen biotech from both sidesof the table—first as an investor, and now as a builder. I’m joined by Punit Dhillon, CEO of Skye Bioscience, wherehe’s leading one of the most exciting stories in metabolic health.Punit started Skye as employee number one and has sincebuilt it into a clinical-stage company with one first-in-class programs and backing from major life science investors like 5AM and Versant. With a background in finance and business development—and a career that includes partnerships with Merck, Genentech, BMS and Pfizer—he brings a unique anddeeply strategic lens to biotech leadership.In this episode, we dig into the mindset it takes to buildfrom the ground up, the wave of innovation in obesity, and how Skye is carving out its own lane in one of the most competitive markets in biotech.

In this discussion, Paula Soteropoulos, a seasoned biotech executive with over 30 years’ experience, shares her unexpected journey into the world of biotech. She delves into leadership lessons from her time at Genzyme and her role in pioneering in vivo gene therapies at Ensoma. Paula highlights the importance of mentorship, authentic leadership, and navigating funding challenges while building companies. She also reveals what makes startups attractive to investors, emphasizing validated biology and a focus on rare diseases.