Scientific Advisory Board The Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) has an independent mentoring and advisory role to the Executive, providing strategic insight and commercial direction to the Centre. The SAB plays a key role in advising the Centre on the development of the strategic and commercialisation plans. The Board advises on patent versus publication strategy, and commercialisation and spin-out strategy as required. They assist in identifying intellectual property, partnering and licensing opportunities and organisations with which CBNS can ally. In addition to the core members of the SAB, there are temporary international members, including the CBNS Visiting Professor, who provide variation to the scientific mix of the SAB. Professor Alan Rowan
Professor Rowan has performed his research at the interface of chemistry and biology with seminal and pioneering work on processive catalysis and functional self-assembly. His latest scientific achievement has been the development of the first truly biomimetic hydrogel which mimics the mechanic and functional properties of the extracellular membrane.
from magnetic materials, single enzyme catalysis, supramolecular catalysis through to nanometresized solar cells and photonic materials. In the last ten years, he developed the concept of processive catalysis, mimicking the natural exo- and endonucleases and demonstrated that a macrocyclic catalyst can thread onto and move along a polymer substrate in a highly efficient process.
This scientific breakthrough is now being developed commercially for wound dressing, drug therapeutic and cell growth. This has further established Professor Rowan as a truly innovative scientist, working toward understanding at the molecular level the functionality of hierarchical materials and catalysis.
In January 2016 Professor Rowan joined the University of Queensland as the Director of the Australian Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology. He previously led a research group at Radboud University’s Institute of Molecules and Materials, one of Europe’s leading research centres for the nanoscience’s. He was awarded an ARC Australian Laureate Fellowship to continue his work on novel biomimetic and dynamic materials.
Professor Rowan’s considerable scientific curiosities has resulted in him working in many areas, ranging
Dr David Owen
Dr Owen has driven the drug delivery programs by developing and executing a number of successful proof-of-concept studies. The results from these studies have led to a number of commercial partnerships such as Stiefel, a GSK company, Lilly and AstraZeneca, as well as driving Starpharma’s own internal drug delivery program focused on an improved dendrimer-docetaxel formulation.
Dr Julio Ribeiro
Dr Ribeiro completed his PhD in Medicine at UNSW in 1998. He then moved from academia to start a business carried at Sigma-Aldrich Pty. Ltd., Australia and NZ, where he had many executive roles, including technical support manager, sales manager and manager of a fine chemical division (SAFC) in Australia and NZ. In 2006, Dr Ribeiro founded Inventia Pty Ltd, a fine chemical and biotechnology company. As Managing Director, Dr Ribeiro oversees R&D projects from conceptualisation to delivery. This includes the conception of projects, contracting scientists, daily operations and writing final reports based
on scientists’ results. In its short period of existence, Inventia has landed several R&D contracts. In 2012, Dr Ribeiro created Inventia Genetic Technologies Pty Ltd (IGT). A subsidiary of Inventia Pty Ltd. IGT is now Australian leading provider of bovine IVF for the beef farmers in QLD. IGT has been conducting several research projects in the field of bovine IVF with the objective of increasing the pregnancy rate; facilitate oocytes and embryo transport and development of new bovine IVF media. In 2012, in partnership with UNSW, Dr Ribeiro started the 3D Bioprinting project; commercialising the 3D Bioprinting technology. This resulted in the creation of Inventia Life Science Pty Ltd in 2013.
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Dr Owen is the Vice President of Research at Starpharma and has extensive experience in medicinal chemistry and biochemistry, and in managing teams focused on commercially directed drug discovery. He has held several positions in the biotech industry including Mimotopes, Cerylid and Glykoz and has gathered extensive international experience in biotechnology and pharmaceutical research and development. Since joining Starpharma
