Board of Directors
Joseph K. Piper has served as our Chairman since 2006. Mr. Piper directs the overall investment strategy for Integra Ventures. Since 1983, he has been involved with corporate governance, formation, growth, senior management, mergers and acquisitions, and investment in the healthcare industry. He currently sits on the board of several Integra Ventures portfolio companies including Blue Heron Biotechnology, HealthHelp, and Cardiometrix. Mr. Piper also serves as Chairman of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society GWC. Prior to founding Integra Ventures, Mr. Piper co-founded and served as President of Capital Services for Diversified Health Services (“DHS”) the largest post-acute care outsourcing management firm in the United States at the time, which was later sold to ServiceMaster (NYSE: SVM). Mr. Piper holds an MBA. from the University of Colorado, as well as a Juris Doctor Degree from Seattle University. He earned his B.S. in Business from Arizona State University.
Frederick J. Dechow, Ph.D. See Management Section.
Julia R. Brown has served as a director since 2001. She also serves on the Board of Directors of Targacept, Inc. and Labopharm, Inc. She was a member of the founding Board of Directors of Trius Therapeutics, Inc. and continued to serve until its recent Series B financing. She remains on the Trius business advisory board. She was a member of the Board of Directors of Tanox, Inc. from 2005 until its acquisition by Genentech in 2007. She served on the business advisory board of CovX Pharmaceuticals from 2004 until its acquisition by Pfizer in 2008. Ms. Brown is a member of the board of CONNECT, an organization that fosters innovation, entrepreneurship and the formation of new companies. She serves on its public policy committee. Ms. Brown is Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees of the University of California, San Diego Foundation. She is a Tech Coast Angel, a member of BIOCOM, Corporate Director’s Forum, and Athena. From 2000-2003, Ms. Brown was Executive Vice President of Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Advisor to the CEO until 2008. Prior to joining Amylin, Ms. Brown was Executive Vice President of Dura Pharmaceuticals, Inc. She was with Dura from 1995-1999. Ms. Brown spent over 25 years with Eli Lilly and Company in progressively more senior roles. From 1992-1994, Ms. Brown was Vice President of IVAC Corporation and General Manager of its Vital Signs Division (a Lilly subsidiary). She was Vice President of Worldwide Marketing for Hybritech (another Lilly subsidiary), and led global marketing from1986-1992. She held a variety of positions in the pharmaceutical division, including eight years in the Company’s international division. She did basic research in antimicrobials from 1969-1973. Ms. Brown is a graduate of Louisiana Tech University where she studied microbiology and biochemistry.
A. Sinclair Dunlop has served as a director since 2006. Mr. Dunlop is a Director of New Business Ventures for MASA, Inc., and manages client investments in the areas of information technology, biotechnology and healthcare. A former international business and economics analyst with the Center for Strategic & International Studies in Washington, D.C., Mr. Dunlop has several years of private equity and venture capital experience in Europe, the United States and Israel. Prior to joining MASA, Mr. Dunlop was an Associate at New Vantage Group, manager of several early-stage venture capital funds. In May 2000, Mr. Dunlop received his MBA. from Columbia Business School where he was the R.C. Kopf British-American Fellow in international business. He also holds an M.A. with honors in Political Economy from the University of Glasgow and an M.A. in International Relations from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University. Mr. Dunlop is a St. Andrews Society of New York Scholar.
Jack Nielsen, has served as a director since 2008. Mr. Nielsen, Partner, joined Novo A/S in 2001 and is located in San Francisco, CA. From 1990 to 2001 Mr. Nielsen held various positions in the Novo Nordisk business area which in 2000 became Novozymes. Before joining Novo Ventures, Mr. Nielsen was for four years deeply involved in designing the R&D strategy for Novozymes’ activities in the cereal food area, resulting in the development and launch of novel recombinant lipase and amylase enzymes. Jack has furthermore been involved in major R&D collaborations within the detergent and cereal food industry. Prior hereto, he held positions in marketing and technical services in the textile and personal care area, and started his career in the field of large-scale manufacturing of enzymes. Mr. Nielsen serves on the board of directors of Reata Pharmaceuticals, NeoMend, Alios Biopharma, Cell Biosciences, and Protein Forest. Jack Nielsen obtained his MSc in 1990 from the Technical University of Denmark, and his Master in Management of Technology from the Center for Technology, Economics and Management in Copenhagen in 2000.
Tane Williams joined the MediQuest Board in May 2009. He has a 33-year history of investment experience and has been the Principal at Tacit Capital Group from 1993 to present, and at U. S. Land and Cattle Co. from 1976 to 1990. Both of these firms invested in hi-tech, biotech, real estate and energy opportunities. He has served on the Boards of Axonix Corporation, Bainbridge Sciences (later purchased by C. R. Bard), Laurus Medical Innovations; and Solid Design and Analysis Engineering. He attended South Dakota State University and Brigham Young University.
Board Observers
Andy Acker, CFA, is Executive Vice President and Portfolio Manager of Janus Global Life Sciences Fund, which he has managed since May 2007. In addition, Mr. Acker is Portfolio Manager of other Janus accounts and performs duties as a research analyst. He joined Janus Capital in 1999 as a securities analyst. Mr. Acker holds a Bachelor of Science degree (magna cum laude) in Biochemical Sciences from Harvard College where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He also holds a Master's degree in Business Administration with honors from Harvard Business School. Mr. Acker holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.
Jack Rosling is President of CITYICE Cold Storage Company, Terminal 91, Port of Seattle. CITYICE specializes in serving the seafood industry with particular emphasis on the distant-water factory trawler fleet. He was also President of Myers Metals & Minerals, which in the recent past was active on the West Coast in the international steel trade and industrial raw materials business. Additionally, he has been or is currently a director of Dant and Russell, Bainbridge Sciences, Data West Corporation, Terminal 91 Realty, Northwest Harvest and the Entrepreneurship Center Advisory Board of Albers School of Business and Economics, Seattle University. Mr. Rosling is an active member of the Puget Sound Venture Club and the Alliance of Angels. Following his military service as an officer in the U.S. Navy, he returned to Seattle in 1962 and shortly thereafter started his business career with the predecessor company of Myers Metals & Minerals. Mr. Rosling became a partner in that firm in 1968, and was appointed as its President in 1973. Mr. Rosling received a bachelor's degree in Business Administration and Economics from Whitman College.