Executive Management
Alan J. Lewis, Ph.D., joined Novocell in February 2006 as president, chief executive officer and director. Prior to Novocell, Dr. Lewis served as CEO and director of Signal Pharmaceuticals before its acquisition in 2000 by Celgene, a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of small molecule drugs for cancer and immunological diseases. He then served as president of the Signal Research Division at Celgene. Dr. Lewis previously held the position of vice president of research at Wyeth-Ayerst, where he spent 15 years leading research efforts in diabetes, CNS, cardiovascular, inflammatory, allergy and bone metabolism diseases. Dr. Lewis currently serves as a director of BioMarin Pharmaceutical, Inc. and Cytochroma, Inc. He holds a Ph.D. in pharmacology from the University of Wales in Cardiff and completed his postdoctoral training at Yale University.
E. Edward Baetge, Ph.D., became vice president and chief scientific officer when Novocell merged with CyThera and Bresagen Inc. in 2004. He was recruited to CyThera, as chief scientific officer in 2001 to head its then emerging human embryonic stem cell program. Prior to joining CyThera, Dr. Baetge held the position of chief scientific officer at Modex Therapeutics Ltd., in Lausanne, Switzerland, which developed one of the first adult stem cell products for the treatment of chronic ulcers culminating in a $64 million initial public offering. Before Modex, Dr. Baetge held management positions at CytoTherapeutics and Bristol-Myers Squibb. He holds a Ph.D. in molecular neurobiology from Cornell University and completed postdoctoral work at Cornell University and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Dr. Baetge has published extensively in the field of cell therapy and produced a number of cell technology patents.
Allan Robins, Ph.D., is Novocell’s vice president and chief technical officer and oversees the company’s operations in Athens, Georgia. Dr. Robins began his career as operations manager at BresaGen Limited, an Australian biotechnology company, where he later became chief scientific officer and helped raise over $30 million. While at BresaGen Limited, he developed a proprietary expression system which continues to be used in BresaGen Limited’s production of protein pharmaceuticals. In 2000, Dr. Robins helped BresaGen Limited establish its United States subsidiary, BresaGen, Inc., to focus on its stem cell technology. Dr. Robins served as BresaGen, Inc.’s chief scientific officer until it merged with CyThera in 2004 and subsequently merged with Novocell later that year. Dr. Robins received a B.S. with honors in biochemistry and a Ph.D. in molecular biology from the University of Adelaide in Australia. He followed his studies with postdoctoral work at Cambridge University in England.
Xiaojie Yu, Ph.D., is Novocell’s senior director of biomaterials science. Dr. Yu has 20 years of R&D experience focusing on the design, synthesis, characterization and processing of novel polymeric biomaterials for cell therapy, tissue engineering, drug delivery systems, medical devices and other biomedical and pharmaceutical applications. While at Novocell, Dr. Yu helped establish the company’s proprietary cell encapsulation platform technology, leading to a successful Phase I/II proof-of-principle clinical trial. Prior to joining Novocell, Dr. Yu held a number of academic positions including acting Assistant Professor of Bioengineering at the University of Washington and Associate Professor of polymer chemistry at Zhejiang University in China. Dr. Yu received his Ph.D. degree with honors in bioengineering from the University of Paris-Nord, France.
Liz Bui, J.D., Ph.D., oversees Novocell’s intellectual property portfolio and directs all activities including IP strategy, patent prosecution and licensing agreements. Dr. Bui is an integral part of the business development team interfacing with potential investors and strategic collaborators. Prior to joining Novocell, Liz was an associate/patent agent at DLA Piper LLP; the largest private law firm in the United States. While attending law school full-time at Pepperdine University School of Law, Dr. Bui was a technology specialist with the law firm of Oppenheimer, Wolff & Donnelly, LLP in Santa Monica, California. Prior to her legal career, she was a professor of biological sciences at Mt. San Antonia College, Walnut, California. Dr. Bui was a NIH Post-Doctoral Fellow at the University of California in Irvine (UCI) doing Alzheimer’s research in the laboratory of Dr. Carl Cotman. Dr. Bui received her Ph.D. in cell and molecular biology at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Dr. Bui is part of the programming committee for the San Diego chapter of the Licensing Executive Society (LES). Dr. Bui also serves the San Diego community as a member of the Board of Directors of Touissant Academy of Arts and Sciences (TAAS), a school and shelter for homeless teenagers. TAAS is a part of Father Joe’s Villages group of charities.
Anne Sandan, C.P.A., is Novocell’s controller & senior director of corporate administration and corporate secretary. During the past 17 years, she managed all aspects of accounting, internal and external SEC financial reporting, cash management and budgeting for a variety of private and publicly-held companies. Ms. Sandan also provides comprehensive experience in administrative functions, including human resources, information systems and facility management. Prior to entering the biotechnology industry, she was director of accounting compliance at Carl Zeiss Vision, where she was responsible for company-wide accounting policies and adherence to U.S. GAAP and International Financial Reporting Standards. She also led Sarbanes-Oxley compliance efforts for SOLA International. Ms. Sandan began her career with the audit division of Arthur Andersen LLP. This led to significant leadership roles in accounting where she was instrumental in implementing best practices in a wide variety of industries, including wireless technology, REITs, media-based corporate training and hospitality and entertainment. Ms. Sandan is a cum laude graduate of University of San Diego, where she received a B.B.A. in accounting. She is an active member of the community, currently serving as board member and treasurer of a non-for-profit San Diego performing arts organization for youth. Ms. Sandan is a California certified public accountant.