Speaker

Before joining the Chinese University of Hong Kong as Global Stem Scholar and Professor in the Faculty of Medicine, Stephen Dalton (SD) was Professor and Endowed Chair in Molecular Cell Biology at the University of Georgia where he was founding Director of the “Center for Molecular Medicine”, and Georgia Cancer Coalition Distinguished Scholar. Originally from the UK, Dr. Dalton received his Ph.D. from the University of Adelaide in Australia, followed by post-doctoral research at the Imperial Cancer Research Fund in London, with Sir Richard Treisman. Following this, SD was appointed to the Roche Institute of Molecular Biology (Hoffman La Roche, New Jersey, USA), with an academic appointment at Columbia University in New York City. Since then, SD has continued research on the therapeutic use of stem cells. This includes collaborations with Johnson and Johnson (New Jersey, USA), Nestle’ (Lausanne, Switzerland) and Viacyte Inc. (San Diego, USA), which was recently acquired by Vertex Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Dalton’s current work focuses on developing cell-therapy and gene-editing technologies for the treatment of human disease.

John is a scientific leader with 25 years of experience spanning research, biotech/medtech R&D and operations, incl. clinical settings. As Chief Scientific Officer at MiskawaanHealth Group, he oversees the clinical development and integration of advanced therapeutic products—including cell therapies, regenerative technologies, and natural medicines—into functional and integrative healthcare for cancer, chronic diseases, and healthy ageing. John’s expertise covers oncology, medical devices, stem cells and targeted delivery systems for therapeutics and nutraceuticals. He leads multidisciplinary teams in the development of next-generation therapies, managing multiple clinical trials, registration of new products, procurement of medicines, and drives the international expansion of longevity clinics. His core scientific skills include molecular and cellular biology, cell encapsulation, virology, microbiome and microbiology, with a strong focus on translating research into innovative medical solutions.

Anthony founded Dark Horse Consulting in 2014, bringing his 20+ years of leadership experience in product, process and manufacturing development to cell and gene therapy companies in need. Anthony’s responsibilities as CEO include defining the strategic growth and focus of the practice, team building, liaising with key clients, and developing business for the company. He is a highly sought-after keynote speaker and chair of national and international conferences and seminars, noted for his provocative, thoughtful, and sometimes contrarian presentations.

Previously, Anthony served as a senior executive for multiple publicly traded and privately held companies, building a reputation for innovation, dedication and competency. A certified Six Sigma Champion, Anthony’s recent industry positions were at Capricor Therapeutics, where he served as CTO, and Geron Corporation, where he was VP of Product Development. At Geron, Anthony led the process development, technical operations, pilot plant, analytical development, and cGMP manufacturing functions. He was responsible for all CMC-related regulatory filings, including the first ever IND to secure FDA clearance for initiation of clinical testing of an hESC-derived product.At Capricor Therapeutics, Anthony was responsible for the development and expansion of the company’s cardiovascular therapeutics portfolio, including but not limited to in-house and in-licensed stem cell and peptide products.

At an earlier position at Onyx Pharmaceuticals, after critical contributions to the development of the oncology drugs Nexavar® and Ibrance®, Anthony built manufacturing teams for the adenovirus gene therapy ONYX-015, running a multi-thousand-litre, pre-commercial process for this first-in-class product.

Patrick is an established pharmaceutical executive and practitioner with proven leadership in proactive risk identification, deployment of strategies to enhance compliance controls, and implementation of detection systems to eliminate blind spots. He is skilled in policy deployment, Computer System Validation, Data Integrity/Governance, Risk Management, Supply Chain Logistics and application of AI for the next generation of quality professionals. He has trained FDA field inspectors for facility inspection techniques and has delivered talks on deployment of risk strategies and modern signal detection. His expertise also includes outsourcing and integrating efficient governance of Facilities Management and laboratory services across US/UK and Asia-Pacific. Pat’s frequent blogs and articles help educate the industry become aware of emerging global risks, technologies, and their effect on the global supply chain.

Prof. Tao Deng is a faculty member at the Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and obtained her PhD from Oxford University. Her research primarily focuses on the mechanisms by which the core replication machinery of influenza viruses, the viral ribonucleoprotein complexes (vRNPs), functions within host cells, as well as the mechanisms underlying their selective packaging. As corresponding author, she has published a series of original papers in journals such as Nucleic Acids Research, Nature Communications, Cell Reports, EMBO Reports, and Journal of Virology, making significant contributions to advancing our understanding of the detailed molecular mechanism of influenza virus replication. She has also led a major national project on infectious disease prevention and control as the principal investigator and is currently leading a national key R&D project, in addition to having hosted several projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China.

Dr. Destura is a molecular microbiologist and infectious disease specialist. He took his bachelor’s degree in Microbiology at the University of Sto. Tomas holds a medical degree and specialty in internal medicine at the De la Salle Health Sciences Institute. He went to the University of the Philippines for his subspecialty training in Infectious Diseases.

He received a research scholarship to the International Training and Fellowship on Emerging Infectious Diseases at the Center for Global Health, University of Virginia School of Medicine. He also holds a master’s degree in Business Administration from Ateneo Graduate School of Business.
He is a diplomate and fellow in Infectious Diseases. He joined the NIH Philippines and became director of the National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology.
He dedicated his work to the identification of diagnostic targets and the evaluation of diagnostic platforms best suited in a developing country scenario. His most important work is the “Lab-in-a-mug” project which functions as a multi-infectious disease diagnostic platform with its principal product the Biotek-MTM Dengue aqua kit that received local and international recognition such as the NSTW Outstanding Technology Commercialization Award given by the National Academy of Science and Technology (2016), as a gold medalist in the 46th International Invention Exhibition in Geneva, Switzerland, in 2018, Gawad Dagisik for Medical Sciences was given by the Department of Science and Technology in 2019.
Through the Technology Transfer Act of 2009, he built Manila HealthTek Incorporated, the very first university spin-off company from the University of the Philippines in Health Biotechnology. He is a recipient of national and international awards, including the Bill and Melinda Gates travel scholarship in Molecular Helminthology in 2005, Outstanding Young Scientist of the Philippines for Medicine in 2008; UP Manila Research Productivity award, the Top 20 Young Physician Leaders from the Inter-academy Medical Panel in Berlin, Germany, and The Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) all given in 2011; Dr. Jose P. Rizal National Award in Research from the Philippine Medical Association and Dr. Eusebio Y. Garcia Award in Molecular Biology and Molecular Pathology from the National Research Council of the Philippines in 2015. In 2019, he received the Presidential Lingkod Bayan Award from the President of the Philippines. In 2020, he was named among top 100 Asian Scientist in the Asian Science Magazine. His latest work is the local RT-PCR kit for the detection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. In 2024 he received the Alberto G. Romualdez, Jr. Outstanding Health Research Award (Biomedical Research Category) from the Department of Health – PCHRD for his research on the “Molecular Diagnosis of Infectious Diseases Program.”

Dr Dong Dong is currently an Assistant Professor at the JC School of Public Health and Primary Care, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK); a Research Fellow (by courtesy) at the CUHK Centre for Bioethics; an Associate Researcher at the CUHK Shenzhen Research Institute; and the Director of the Rare Disease Real-World Data Lab. Dr. Dong adopts an interdisciplinary, multi-method approach to health research with a patient-centered focus and strong commitment to community–academic partnerships. Her work centers on the health challenges of marginalized populations, with rare diseases as a primary focus. Since 2014, she has examined the burden of rare diseases on patients and families, including quality of life, social support, diagnostics, and treatment adherence. As Principal Investigator, she has secured over USD2 million in funding and produced 100+ peer-reviewed articles, four books, and more than 100 scholarly reports and conference papers. Dr Dong serves as a committee member of the Rare Disease Specialty Committee under the Chinese Hospital Association, and holds leadership or advisory roles in the Asia-Pacific Alliance of Rare Disease Organizations (APARDO), the China Alliance for Rare Diseases, the Illness Challenge Foundation, Beijing Aili Myasthenia Gravis Care Center, Rare Disease Hong Kong, and Hong Kong Neuro-Muscular Disease Association.

Dr. Lo received her Ph.D. in Clinical Oncology from The University of Hong Kong and pursued postdoctoral training under Professor Yusuke Nakamura at The University of Tokyo. She subsequently joined The Chinese University of Hong Kong, where she introduced the first 3D cell printer to the School of Biomedical Sciences and established the Biofabrication Center to advance research in tissue engineering and regenerative applications. In 2020, Dr. Lo joined Rohto Advanced Research Hong Kong to begin her career in stem cell therapy, contributing to the development of innovative approaches for regenerative medicine. She later relocated to Japan to join Rohto Pharmaceutical’s Pharmacological Evaluation Team, where she focuses on translational research, preclinical evaluation, and the development of mesenchymal stem cell–based clinical programs. Her work bridges academia and industry, with a strong emphasis on advancing regenerative medicine through both technological innovation and therapeutic application.

Dr. Du Xin, the CEO of Shenzhen Eglion Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. and a former FDA review expert, obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Florida and completed his postdoctoral training at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). He has worked at the FDA and several pharmaceutical companies. Currently, he serves as the CEO of Shenzhen Eglion Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. Dr. Du Xin has extensive experience in biopharmaceuticals and small molecule products, and possesses unique regulatory experience combining FDA and industry perspectives. He is well-versed in the regulations of the FDA and globally regarding drug development, production, quality management, clinical design, and trials.

Jerzy Duszynski was the President of the Polish Academy of Sciences (PAS) from 2015 to 2022. He is a professor at the Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, PAS (he was the Director of the Institute in years 2002 -2008). Duszynski’s research interests focus on bioenergetics, the role of mitochondria in cell functioning and neurodegenerative diseases. He published numerous scientific papers in prestigious scientific journals: Science, Biochemistry, Nature Prot., J. Biol. Chem., Biochem. Biophys. Acta, FEBS Letter etc. He served as a Deputy Minister responsible for science at the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education (2008 – 2009).  He is a member of Academia Europaea, the Chinese Academy of Sciences (foreign member), and the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (foreign member). He serves as a member of the advisory board of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.  He has received numerous foreign awards: French Officer of Academic Palms, Doctor Honoris Causa from the National Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, Japanese Medal of Rising Sun with Ribbons, etc.  He was a Member of the Board of Trustees at the Barcelona Institute for Research in Biomedicine.