Bradford A. Zakes
President and CEO
Mr. Zakes has spent over 20 years in various segments of the drug and medical device development industries. Following his career as a commissioned officer in the United States Army, Mr. Zakes joined Hazleton Laboratories as a Toxicologist where he designed and managed pre-clinical toxicology studies in support of pharmaceutical products. Mr. Zakes was subsequently hired by Glaxo (currently Glaxo Smithkline) where he initially played a key role in the development of the company’s first US-based toxicology testing facility. While at Glaxo, Mr. Zakes also played an active role in the clinical development of Zantac and managed the sNDA program for the approval of Serevent for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Mr. Zakes was a Director at InSite Clinical trials, which was sold to United Healthcare and later served as the President of Heart Research Centers International (HRCI), a wholly owned operating company of MedCath, Inc. Mr. Zakes served as Director of Business Management at ICOS Corporation and President and Chief Executive Officer at ImaRx Therapeutics, a publicly traded biopharmaceutical company. Currently, Mr. Zakes serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Cerevast Therapeutics, a medical technology company focused on the development of new treatments for acute ischemic stroke and other vascular disorders. Mr. Zakes holds a BS degree in Biology from Oregon State University, An MS degree in Toxicology from the American University and received his MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. Additionally, Mr. Zakes serves on the Board of Directors for the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) as well as the Emerging Company Section Governing Body and the Standing Committees on International Affairs and Budget and Audit for BIO.
Gordon Brandt, M.D.
Chief Medical Officer
Dr. Gordon Brandt is Chief Medical Officer at Cerevast. His 25+ year focus has been on drug and device development, culminating in US and international regulatory approvals. From 2002 through 2008 he was employed by Nastech Pharmaceutical Company as Executive Vice President overseeing clinical and regulatory affairs. During that time Nastech received both NDA (new drug) and ANDA (generic drug) approvals. From 1997 to 2002 Dr. Brandt was Vice President of Clinical and Regulatory Affairs at Sonus Pharmaceuticals. Sonus received European approval via the Centralized Process for its ultrasound contrast agent, Echogen. Earlier in his career, Dr. Brandt worked on imaging products including the first commercial magnetic resonance imaging system for Diasonics and a line of novel ultrasound systems for Siemens, resulting in approvals via the PMA, 510k, and CE mark routes. Dr. Brandt received a medical degree from the University of California San Francisco. He graduated phi beta kappa and Summa Cum Laude with an engineering degree from Yale. Dr. Brandt holds five US patents.
Kendall Stever
Chief Financial Officer
Kendall Stever is an experienced financial professional with over 20 years experience in the life sciences industry. Previously, Mr. Stever was CFO of Verathon Medical, Inc., a leading designer, developer and manufacturer of proprietary medical devices for the urology and airway management markets. Verathon marketed its products globally with operations in 7 countries and annual sales of $125 million. Verathon was acquired by Roper Industries in 2009. Prior to joining Verathon, Mr. Stever provided financial management consulting services to life science and high-tech companies through a company he started in 2003. His company served publicly and privately-held companies in the areas of corporate compliance, initial public offerings, financial projections, internal controls, financial systems and accounting operations. Prior to this, he was Corporate Controller for Immunex Corporation, a premier developer of biopharmaceutical technology. Immunex was acquired by Amgen, Inc. in 2002. He joined Immunex in 1990 and held various financial management positions during the company’s growth from a 200 person research company to a fully integrated research, manufacturing, and sales organization employing more than 2,000 employees with annual sales exceeding $ 1 billion. Mr. Stever started his career in 1987 as an auditor with the public accounting firm of Deloitte and Touche. He is a CPA and holds a B.A. in business administration from the University of Washington.
Dilip Worah
Chief Scientific Officer
Dilip M. Worah joined the Company as Chief Scientific Officer in January 2009. Previously, from December 2006 to April 2008, Mr. Worah was Sr. Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Artemesia BioMedical, Inc. From July 2001 to March 2003, Mr. Worah was Chief Scientific Officer at Nastech Pharmaceutical Company, Inc. From January 1992 to December 2000, Mr. Worah was Vice President, Research and Development at SONUS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. From August 1984 to December 1991, Mr. Worah was employed by Salutar, Inc. as Manager, Biological Sciences. From 1981 to 1984, Mr. Worah served as a scientist at Miles Laboratories, a pharmaceutical company. Prior to joining Salutar and Miles Laboratories, Mr. Worah served as a manager of research and development at BioRad Laboratories and as a manager of research and development of International Diagnostic Technology. Mr. Worah has also served as an independent consultant to several healthcare companies. Mr. Worah holds an M.S. in chemistry from the University of Denver. He has been awarded several U.S. patents covering MRI technology and x-ray and ultrasound imaging agents and has published over 22 scientific papers.
Anthony J. Alleman
Vice President, Operations
Mr. Alleman is a retired United States Navy officer with a distinguished career that included service on submarines, nuclear power engineering, and senior leadership positions on operational staffs. Since leaving the Navy, he has worked in private industry in operations and technical project management. At Advanced Inquiry Systems, a Portland, Oregon based startup semiconductor test equipment firm, he built a solely outsourced supply chain for the manufacture of an innovative wafer level test system. He successfully qualified and managed 10 key suppliers and managed the technical liaison to the internal engineering group during the product development phase. With extensive experience in operational excellence and Six Sigma, he has also served as an advisor for the Northwest Food Processors Innovation & Productivity Center, a not-for-profit organization charged with improving global competitiveness in the $23B food manufacturing industry in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. He has led projects to enhance plant and industry level productivity; encourage technology awareness and transfer for increased innovation; and leadership development efforts with a particular focus on emerging/startup firms. Mr. Alleman holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Oregon State University and an MBA from George Fox University.
Andrew Leo
Vice President, Quality
Mr. Leo is a quality management professional with 20 years of experience in biomedical research and development organizations, including Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He recently served as the Senior Director of Quality and Laboratory Operations at Sonus Pharmaceuticals. He has established and maintained sound quality systems to support biomedical development programs, which has been validated through audits by major regulatory agencies and corporate partners. He has also led and completed several technology transfer projects to contract manufacturers, and has developed strong relationships with key suppliers and service providers. He is a senior member of the American Society for Quality.