Board of Directors
Click on board member name to see their bio.
Steven Gillis, Ph.D.
Executive Chairman and Acting President, Theraclone Sciences; Managing Director, ARCH Venture Partners- Steven Gillis, Ph.D. is a Managing Director at ARCH Venture Partners, focused on the evaluation of new life science technologies and also on the development and growth of ARCH’s biotechnology portfolio companies. Dr. Gillis was a founder and director of Corixa Corp. and served as the company’s Chief Executive Officer since inception and as its Chairman since January of 1999. Corixa was acquired by GlaxoSmithKline in July of 2005. Prior to starting Corixa, Dr. Gillis was a founder and director of Immunex Corp. From 1981 until his departure in 1994, Dr. Gillis served as Immunex’s Director of Research and Development, Chief Scientific Officer, and Chief Executive Officer of Immunex’s Research and Development subsidiary. Dr. Gillis was interim Chief Executive Officer of Immunex Corp. following its majority purchase by American Cyanamid Co. and he remained a member of the Board of Directors until 1997. Immunex was acquired by Amgen Inc. in 2002. Dr. Gillis is an immunologist by training and is credited as being a pioneer in the field of cytokines and cytokine receptors, directing the development of multiple marketed products, including Leukine®, Prokine®, Enbrel®, and Bexxar®. Dr. Gillis received his B.A. from Williams College in 1975 and his Ph.D. from Dartmouth College in 1978.
Wende Hutton
General Partner, Canaan PartnersSeasoned healthcare investor Wende Hutton is passionate about identifying, investing in and building companies that are revolutionizing the practice of medicine. She joined Canaan in 2004, bringing diverse expertise from across the entire medical spectrum. Over the last 15 years, Wende has facilitated the market entrance of over 11 novel and lifesaving medical devices, new drugs and diagnostics. Her track record is a testament to her leadership and includes the initial public offerings of five companies, of which two were later acquired, and the acquisition of three more by medical companies. Wende began her venture career at Mayfield Fund in 1993, where she was a General Partner in the life sciences group until 2001. During her tenure at Mayfield, Wende incubated Heartstream Inc. (HPQ) and Northstar Neuroscience Inc. (NSTR), working closely with those founding teams. Most recently, she was a General Partner at Spring Ridge Ventures, a healthcare-focused seed fund. Earlier in her career, Wende held senior operational management positions at GenPharm International and Nellcor in business development and marketing.
Wende sits on the boards of Alsius Corp (Nasdaq: ALUS), Apieron Inc., BiPar Sciences, Inc., Calibra Medical, ReVision Optics, Inc. and Theraclone Sciences. Her previous board seats include Heartstream, Inc. (acquired by Hewlett Packard), Micro Therapeutics, Inc. (acquired by ev3, Inc.), Northstar Neuroscience (NSTR), Orquest, Inc. (acquired by Johnson & Johnson), and SenoRx, Inc. (NASDAQ: SENO).
Wende holds an AB in human biology from Stanford University and an MBA from Harvard Business School, where she was a Baker Scholar. She is an active member of several community service groups, including serving as task-force leader on obesity for the Santa Clara and Mid-Peninsula YMCAs. Beyond her community service involvements, Wende’s first love is a field biology hike or lecture.
Christopher K. Mirabelli, Ph.D.
Managing Director, HealthCare Ventures, LLC (HCV)Dr. Mirabelli has been a Managing Director at HealthCare Ventures, LLC (HCV) since 2000. HCV, founded in 1985, is a leading venture capital group focused on investing in and building significant companies in the biopharmaceutical industry. HCV has raised over $1.6 billion in eight funds. Dr. Mirabelli serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sequoia Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and as a member of the Board of Directors of CellGate, Inc., Critical Therapeutics, Inc., DecImmune Therapeutics, Inc., Galleon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Synovex Corporation.
Prior to joining HealthCare Ventures, Dr. Mirabelli served as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of LeukoSite, Inc. from 1993 through 1999. LeukoSite merged with Millennium Pharmaceuticals in December 1999. Dr. Mirabelli presided over the integration of LeukoSite into Millennium as President of Pharmaceutical R&D and a member of the Company’s Board of Directors until mid-2000. Dr. Mirabelli was a founder of Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., where he served in a number of senior research and development positions from 1989 to 1993. He was a member of SmithKline and French Laboratories R&D Division from 1981 to 1988 where he held a number of positions including Director of the Department of Molecular Pharmacology. Dr. Mirabelli received his Ph.D. degree in molecular pharmacology from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas in 1981.