Russell J. Cox

Russell J. Cox

President and
Chief Executive Officer

Russell is President and Chief Executive Officer. Pior to Epirium, Russell served as Chief Executive Officer at Vital Therapies, Inc. He previously served as the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc, with responsibility for global commercial activities, R&D, manufacturing/technical operations, new product planning and global molecule leadership. Prior to Jazz, he served as Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer of Ipsen Group, a pharmaceutical company headquartered in Paris, France, focused on oncology, neuroscience and rare diseases. He was also Vice President of Marketing at Tercica, Inc. prior to its acquisition by Ipsen Group, and served as Vice President, Marketing with Scios Inc., which was acquired by Johnson & Johnson in 2003. Russell began his career at Genentech, Inc. where he was a Product Team Leader responsible for the growth hormone franchise and led numerous product launches as a Group Product Manager.

Russell serves on the boards of directors of Gossamer Bio and Spyre Therapeutics where he serves as Chairman of the Board. He also served as Chairman of the Board of Aeglea BioTherapeutics, Inc., from 2015 until their reverse merger from Aeglea into Spyre in 2023. Russell received a B.S. degree in biomedical science from Texas A&M University.

Alexander Casdin

Alexander Casdin

Chief Operating Officer

Alex is Chief Operating Officer, previously serving as Epirium’s Chief Operating Officer/Chief Financial Officer, and Chief Financial Officer. Alex has broad operational and financial expertise, with over 25 years of experience as a successful healthcare executive and institutional investor. Before joining Epirium, Alex was the founder, Chief Executive Officer, and portfolio manager of Reneo Capital Management LP, a successful healthcare investment fund. He previously served as Chief Finance Officer of Sophiris Bio, Inc. and Vice President of Finance for Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Alex was a founder and senior advisor at Casdin Advisors, LLC; Chief Executive Officer and portfolio manager at Cooper Hill Partners, LLC., a healthcare investment fund; and portfolio manager of Pequot Capital Management’s healthcare fund. Earlier, he worked at the Dreyfus Corporation as a senior managing analyst covering pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, and medical devices.

Alex serves on the board of directors and Chair of Audit of Erasca, Inc., and the board of directors of Sientra, Inc. He has also served on the boards of directors for multiple life science companies, including Ignyta Inc. (acquired by Roche) and Dusa Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (acquired by Sun Pharma), and served as an Investor Board Observer of 454 Life Sciences (acquired by Roche).

Alex is treasurer, executive committee member, and board member of The American Society of Clinical Oncology’s Conquer Cancer Foundation. He received an M.B.A. from Columbia Business School, Beta Gamma Sigma, and a B.A. in political science from Brown University.

Eric Miller

Eric Miller

Chief Financial Officer

Eric currently serves as our Chief Financial Officer and leads our accounting and finance functions. He joined Epirium as Vice President, Finance Operations and Chief Accounting Officer in January 2021, bringing over 20 years of finance experience, including over a decade in the life science industry at both commercial and clinical-stage companies. Prior to joining Epirium, Eric was the acting San Diego Site Head of Finance at Synthorx, Inc. after its acquisition by Sanofi. Previously, Eric held various roles with increasing responsibilities at Acadia Pharmaceuticals Inc., including Corporate Controller and Principal Accounting Officer. During his time at Acadia, Eric supported its first commercial launch and oversaw accounting, SEC reporting, treasury, and financial planning functions, as well as supported fundraising initiatives of over $1B in follow-on public offerings for the company. He also held roles with increasing responsibility at Cadence Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals).

Eric is a Certified Public Accountant with the State of California and holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Carnegie Mellon University.

Sandy Mahatme

Member

Sandy Mahatme is President, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of a stealth company backed by ARCH Venture Partners. He previously served as Executive Vice President, CFO and Chief Business Officer of Sarepta Therapeutics, Inc.

Prior to those roles, Mr. Mahatme worked at Celgene Corporation, where he served in various positions including Senior Vice President of Corporate Development, Senior Vice President of Finance, Corporate Treasurer and Head of Tax. While at Celgene, he built the treasury and tax functions before establishing the Corporate Development Department, which was focused on strategic, targeted initiatives including commercial development in emerging markets, acquisitions, licensing and global manufacturing expansion. Mr. Mahatme served in senior roles in business development and corporate finance at Pfizer, Inc. after starting his career at Ernst & Young LLP.

In addition to Epirium, he holds board positions with Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Flexion Therapeutics, Inc., and Aeglea Biotherapeutics. Mr. Mahatme earned Master of Laws degrees from Cornell Law School and the New York University School of Law and is a member of the New York State Bar Association.

Jeff Bird

Member

Jeffrey Bird, M.D., Ph.D., is the founder of Bluebird Ventures, an early stage life sciences venture capital firm. Formerly he was a managing director at Sutter Hill Ventures, where he focused on healthcare, including biotechnology and genomic technologies. Dr. Bird has been a board member of several public and many private biotechnology companies over an almost 20 year investing career. He has also held various leadership roles at multiple biotech companies throughout his career, including CEO and of Verinata Health, Inc, lead Director of Forty Seven Inc, Director of Corporate Development at Gilead Sciences Inc, and independent Director of Portola Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Bird has done a Ph.D. in Cancer Biology from Stanford University in 1988 and an MD in 1992 from Stanford Medical School, Stanford University and a B.S in Biological Sciences from Stanford University in 1982.

Russell J. Cox

Member

Prior to his role as President and Chief Executive Officer of Epirium Bio, Russell J. Cox served as Chief Executive Officer at Vital Therapies, Inc. He previously served as the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc, with responsibility for global commercial activities, R&D, manufacturing/technical operations, new product planning and global molecule leadership. Prior to Jazz, Mr. Cox served as Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer of Ipsen Group, a pharmaceutical company headquartered in Paris, France, focused in oncology, neuroscience and rare diseases. He was also Vice President of Marketing at Tercica, Inc. prior to its acquisition by Ipsen Group, and served as Vice President, Marketing with Scios Inc., which was acquired by Johnson & Johnson in 2003. Mr. Cox began his career at Genentech, Inc. where he was a Product Team Leader responsible for the growth hormone franchise and led numerous product launches as a Group Product Manager. Mr. Cox has served on the Board of Directors of Aeglea BioTherapeutics, Inc. since 2015. Mr. Cox received a B.S. degree in biomedical science from Texas A&M University.

Paul Berns

Chairman of the Board

Mr. Berns is a board member for Unity Biotechnology.  He previously served as President and Chief Executive Officer at Anacor Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, from 2014 until its acquisition by Pfizer, Inc. in 2016.  Mr. Berns served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Allos Therapeutics, Inc., a biotechnology company, from 2006 to 2012 and was President and Chief Executive Officer of Bone Care International, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company, from 2002 to 2005.

Prior to that, Mr. Berns was Vice President and General Manager of the immunology, oncology and pain therapeutics business unit of Abbott Laboratories.  He also served as Vice President, Marketing of BASF Pharmaceuticals/Knoll.  Earlier in his career, Mr. Berns held various positions, including senior management roles, at Bristol-Myers Squibb Company. Mr. Berns received his B.S. in Economics from the University of Wisconsin.

Patrick Enright

Member

Mr. Enright is a Managing Director and Founder of Longitude Capital. Prior to Longitude Capital, Mr. Enright was a Managing Director of Pequot Ventures where he co-led the life sciences investment practice. Prior to Pequot, he was a Managing Member of the Delta Opportunity Fund at Diaz & Altschul Capital Management. Mr. Enright began his investment career at PaineWebber Development Corporation. Mr. Enright also has significant life sciences operations experience, including senior executive positions at Valentis (VLTS), Boehringer Mannheim (acquired by Roche) and Sandoz (now known as Novartis). Mr. Enright currently serves on the boards of Aimmune (AIMT), Aptinyx (APTX), CardioDx, CuraSen Therapeutics, Jazz Pharmaceuticals (JAZZ), Orbus Therapeutics and SutroVax. Selected prior board memberships include Codexis (CDXS), Corcept Therapeutics (CORT), Esperion Therapeutics (ESPR), Horizon Pharmaceuticals (HZNP), InfaCare Pharmaceutical, MAP Pharmaceuticals (MAPP, acquired by Allergan), Prestwick Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Lundbeck), Sequenom (SQNM, acquired by LabCorp) and Threshold Pharmaceuticals (THLD). Mr. Enright holds an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania and a B.S. in Biological Sciences from Stanford University.

Helen Blau, PhD

Helen Blau, PhD

SAB Co-Chair
Professor, Stanford University
Director, Baxter Laboratory for Stem Cell Biology

Scott Delp, PhD

Scott Delp, PhD

SAB Co-Chair
Professor of Bioengineering Mechanical Engineering and Orthopedic Surgery, Stanford

Robert Booth, PhD

Robert Booth, PhD

Former SVP, Roche
CEO, Virobay Inc

Graham Johnson, PhD

Graham Johnson, PhD

Former VP, Discovery Chemistry
Bristol Myers Squibb

Val Harding, PhD

Val Harding, PhD

Principal & Advisor
Start Pharma Consulting LLC

John Day, MD, PhD

John Day, MD, PhD

Professor of Neurology & Pediatrics
Stanford School of Medicine

Charlotte Sumner, MD

Charlotte Sumner, MD

Professor of Neurology
Johns Hopkins

Eugenio Mercuri, MD, PhD

Eugenio Mercuri, MD, PhD

Professor of Neurology
Catholic University Rome, Italy

Lyndsay Murray, PhD

Lyndsay Murray, PhD

Lecturer of Anatomy
University of Edinburgh

Michael P. Dillon, PhD 

Michael P. Dillon, PhD 

Former CSO
Head of Research IDEAYA Biosciences

Paddy Shivanand, PhD

Paddy Shivanand, PhD

Sound CMC Consulting
Head of CMC

David Parkes

David Parkes

Former Senior Director,
Discovery Research, Amylin Pharmaceuticals