Leadership Team
Dr. Nancy Stagliano, Chief Executive Officer
Nancy Stagliano, Ph.D. joined iPierian as Chief Executive Officer in September 2011 with an accomplished career as a biotech leader spanning all aspects of the industry, from discovery research and strategy to global medical affairs and corporate communications. Prior to joining iPierian, Dr. Stagliano was CEO of CytomX Therapeutics, a company where she was co-founder and a lead inventor on the patents for CytomX’s Probody platform. In earlier roles with CytomX, she served as the COO of CytomX LLC, which launched CytomX Therapeutics as well as Cynvenio Biosystems. Before moving to California, Nancy joined the Cambridge, Massachusetts, biotechnology industry in the late 1990s, where she had an eight-year tenure at Millennium Pharmaceuticals and consulted to several local startups. Dr. Stagliano received her BS in Electrical Engineering and her MS in Biomedical Engineering, both from Drexel University in Philadelphia. She obtained her PhD in Neuroscience from the University of Miami, followed by three years as an independently-funded research fellow at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, where she studied mechanisms of brain injury after stroke.
Dr. Adam Rosenthal, Senior Director of Strategic and Corporate Development
Adam Rosenthal, Ph.D., has served as iPierian’s Senior Director of Strategic and Corporate Development since August 2010, working across Finance, Business Development, R&D, and Operations. Prior to joining iPierian, Dr. Rosenthal was a Project Leader at the Boston Consulting Group, working with Fortune 500 pharmaceutical companies in the areas of R&D, operations, and corporate strategy. Prior to joining BCG, he worked at MIT’s Technology Licensing Office, commercializing MIT technology through startup formation and collaborations with industry. Dr. Rosenthal received his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Harvard and MIT, studying stem cells using lab-on-a-chip technology. He was the recipient of several graduate fellowships, including the National Science Foundation and MIT Presidential fellowships. Dr. Rosenthal holds a Master of Engineering degree from MIT in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science, and dual B.S. degrees from MIT in Electrical Engineering and Brain and Cognitive Science.
Dr. Irene Griswold-Prenner, Director of Cell Biology
Irene Griswold-Prenner, Ph.D., is Director of Cell Biology and has been at iPierian since October 2009. She has over 13 years of experience in the biotech industry. Previously she was Senior Scientist at Elan Pharmaceuticals focusing on target identification, validation, and drug discovery efforts in Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and Multiple Sclerosis. To date, she has contributed to target and drug discovery efforts in neurodegenerative disease, cancer, and vision. These efforts have resulted in several peer-reviewed publications and patents. Dr. Griswold-Prenner obtained a bachelor’s degree in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology at the University of Colorado and a Ph.D. in Pharmacology and Cellular Physiology at the University of Chicago studying EGF receptor and MAP kinase signaling pathways. Her postdoctoral research was conducted at UCSF identifying TGF-beta receptor signaling pathways leading to anti-proliferative effects and regulation of extracellular matrix protein production.
Karen C. Lam, Director of Finance
Karen Lam joined iPierian as Director of Finance in September 2009. Ms. Lam is responsible for key functions including financial reporting, accounting and tax. From April 2001 to September 2009, Ms. Lam served as the assistant controller at Monogram Biosciences, Inc., a publicly held molecular diagnostics company with revenues of over $60 million derived from HIV and oncology testing services. At Monogram Biosciences, she was responsible for SEC reporting, accounting and stock administration. From October 1999 to March 2001, she served as the accounting manager at Kabira Technologies, Inc., a telecommunication solutions company. Between 1997 to 1999, she worked for Ernst & Young LLP, serving clients in both the medical and technology fields. Ms. Lam is a Certified Public Accountant in the State of California and received her undergraduate degree in accounting and internal audit from San Francisco State University.
Dr. Eugeni Vaisberg, Director of Lead Discovery
Eugeni Vaisberg, Ph.D., has served as iPierian’s Director of Lead Discovery since July 2009. Dr. Vaisberg has over 20 years of experience in life sciences and drug discovery. He has a proven track record of leadership and innovations in diverse areas of drug discovery, high content screening, cell biology, biochemistry, and informatics. Prior to joining iPierian, Dr. Vaisberg worked at Cytokinetics where he was one of the founding scientists, establishing their biochemistry and informatics departments. Before joining Cytokinetics, Dr. Vaisberg worked as a visiting fellow at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, and as a postdoctoral student and faculty at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Dr. Vaisberg has 17 issued patents and multiple peer reviewed scientific publications and book chapters. He received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the Institute of Protein Research, USSR Academy of Sciences, Moscow.