Dr. Dr. Wolfgang Greb, MD, PhD

Chairman, Avicenna Pharma
Founder & CEO, Pharma Development Holdings GmbH
CEO, Focus Clinical Drug Development GmbH
Micro Carrier Systems GmbH

Dr. Dr. Greb is a Clinical Pharmacologist who has been working in the Anglo-Saxon Big Pharma Industry for many years. He is an entrepreneur and successful founder of several pharmaceutical companies as well as advisor to the international biotech scene. He is the controlling shareholder and executive chairman of the FOCUS group of companies in Neuss / Düsseldorf, Germany.

Dr. Greb has built FOCUS into an integrated Pharma Development Company (staff of 120), specialized in sophisticated clinical proof of concept projects. He and his team have served as principle investigators on numerous clinical studies for the international pharmaceutical and biotech industry, most of them performed in own labs and clinical facilities.
Since several years FOCUS has increasingly been involved in studies with and development projects for biologicals. Product candidates included peptides, proteins, (NBEs, biogenerics and biosimilars), antibodies, oligo-nucleotides, vaccines and cell therapies. Through its combination of clinical pharmacology expertise with our molecular biology experts working in our own laboratories, FOCUS has built up a special experience in biologicals and is particularly competent in this area.

• Organic chemist from the University of Bonn (FRG) as Dr.rer.nat. in 1973.
• Studied in toxicology at Albany Medical College, Institute for Exp. Pathology and Toxicology Albany, N.Y (USA).
• Studied human medicine at the University of Düsseldorf (FRG), graduated as Dr.med. in 1980.
• Work in industrial toxicology spanning from animal metabolism to cell cultures at Henkel Chemical Corp (FRG); was followed by clinical pharmacology research at Beecham Pharmaceuticals and SmithKline Beecham PLC (UK).
• Board certified (Facharzt) in Clinical Pharmacology
• 20 years of R&D within the industry, final position VP-Clinical Pharmacology for SB (UK) with world wide management responsibility (esp. in UK,USA,JP)
• In 1992 organized Management Buy Out of the Clinical Pharmacology Institute of SmithKline Beecham, Germany
• Founded FOCUS Clinical Drug Development GmbH as an independent Clinical Research Organisation (CRO)
• Corporate growth and internationalisation of FOCUS
• Currently CEO of FOCUS, Germany, and its subsidiaries gathered under Pharma Development Holding GmbH.

Dr.Greb is an expert in global drug development and has been an advisor and co-founder of several biotech companies in the EU, USA and Japan.

Prof. Dr. Markus Meyer, MD

Member of the Board, Avicenna Pharma
CEO, FOCUS-IP GmbH

• 14+ years experience in therapeutic peptide discovery and clinical development and executive leadership in biotechnology companies with experience in alliances with US pharmaceutical companies.
• From 1994 to 1999, Head of the Department of Functional Analysis at the State owned Institute for Peptide Research in Hannover (FRG).
• In 1999, active support of transformation into a privately held Biotech Company (IPF Pharmaceuticals) with 83 FTEs.
• From 1999-2003 CSO of IPF-Pharmaceuticals, leading the development of a broad therapeutic product portfolio and screening-to-IND pipeline in a strategic alliance with a US Pharmaceutical Company. Member of the Steering Committee.
• In 2000, Co-founder and Managing Director of Pharis Biotec, Holding company with several biotechnology companies.
• In 2000, co-founder and Managing Director of the biotechnology company, CardioPep Pharma.
• In 2001, appointed Professor at Hannover University School of Medicine (Germany) and teacher in pharmacology.

Manfred Kuhlmann

Non-Executive Director, Avicenna Pharma
Independent Non-Executive Director and Member of the Board, Techtronic Industries, Hong Kong
Hamburg Ambassador – Honorary Representative in the UAE for the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg

• Joined Avicenna as a non-executive Director in April 2008
• Close to four decade of banking career, of which nearly two decades was in Asia (Singapore, Indonesia, Hong Kong – as GM, Dresdner Bank - and Japan – as co-CEO of an Asset Management Affiliate of Dresdner Bank)
• Nearly a decade of banking career in the Middle East as Regional Head – Middle East for Dresdner Bank
• Serves as a non-executive Director and Audit Committee member of a stock listed Hong Kong based company, Techtronic Industries
• Represents the “Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg” in the UAE, providing a vital link in forging business relationships between his hometown and the UAE.

Manfred brings to Avicenna his decades of experience and network from the banking industry especially investment banking, international business development, corporate and risk management as well as a wealth of contacts in the community of high net worth individuals. His involvement with audit committees sets the ground for Avicenna’s corporate ethics and social responsibilities.