Dr. Steve DeCherney 

Dr. DeCherney received a B.A. in biology from Columbia University in 1974 and an M.P.H. from Columbia’s School of Public Health in 1998.  He received his medical degree from Temple University, received his endocrinology training at Vanderbilt University, and completed his residency at the Graduate Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.
 
Dr. DeCherney is Chief Innovation Officer for Quintiles Transnational Corp. and a member of its Executive Committee.  Quintiles is a contract research organization that provides services to help drug and medical device companies develop and sell their companies.  The company, which has offices in about 50 countries, last reported sales of $2.3 billion.  As Chief Innovation Officer, Dr. DeCherney is responsible for creating new models of clinical development to bring new medicines to market more efficiently and improve post-marketing safety surveillance.  Dr. DeCherney joined the company in 2004 as president of Clinical Development Services, North America.  In December 2005, he was appointed president of the firm’s Global Clinical Research, which comprises three business units: Global Clinical Development Services, Global Data Management, and Global Drug Safety/Strategic Research Services.  He is also an adjunct professor of medicine at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine.  A former research physician who is board certified in internal medicine and endocrinology/diabetes, Dr. DeCherney’s research background includes five years at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), followed by 11 years in various key management roles in the Christiana Care Health System in Wilmington, Delaware.  During the same period, he also served as an associate professor at both the University of Delaware and Thomas Jefferson University.  He left Christiana Care Health System to become executive vice president of Global Clinical Operations at PRA International, from where he joined Quintiles in 2004.

From Bench to Boardroom Panelists 

DebleenaSengupta, Ph.D., Associate Manager Global Regulatory Affiars, Schering-Plough

Dr. Sengupta received her Ph.D.from Columbia Univeristy in 2004 with Professor Virginia Cornish, where shedeveloped a method for assaying protein activity in vivo and made progress toward converting apenicillin-binding protein into a beta-lactamase by directed evolution.  Dr. Sengupta has been in regulatoryaffairs for over three years and with Chering-Plough for a year.  She is currently working on theharmonization and compliance of marketed products in the EU. 

Spencer Dreher, Ph.D.,Research Fellow, Merck

Dr. Dreher received his Ph.D.from Columbia University in 1999 with Professor Tom Katz and then didpostdoctoral work with Professor Jim Leighton.  As a graduate student he cofounded C4.  Currently he is in the Process ResearchGroup at Merck where he investigates catalysis and reaction discovery anddevelopment.  Dr. Dreher lives inNew Jersey with his wife and two children.

Sandro Belvedere, Ph.D.,Director of Chemistry, ARMGO Pharma Inc.

Dr. Belvedere received his Ph.D. for Columbia University in2001 with Professor Ronald Breslow. He started his career at Aton Pharma, until its acquisition by Merck in2004.  Dr. Belvedere was a SeniorScientist and Research Leader at GlaxoSmithKline for 2 years, after which heassumed his current position as Director of Chemistry at ARMGO Pharma Inc.

Erick Young, Ph.D., Senior Principal Scientist, Boehringer Ingelheim

Dr.Young received his Ph.D. from Pennsylvania State University in 1996 withProfessor Raymond Funk.  He thendid postdoctoral studies with Professor David Hart at Ohio State University.  Dr. Young has been at BI since 1998 andfor the past five years has served as a medicinal chemistry project leader working on protease, kinase, and GPCR targets for immunology and cardiovascular indications.