Israel Makov President and Chief Executive Officer Israel Makov has been the President and Chief Executive Officer of since April 2002. Previously he served as 's Chief Operating Officer from January 1, 2001, Executive Vice President from 1999 and Vice President for Business Development from 1995-1999. Prior to joining, Mr. Makov was Chief Executive Officer of Gottex from 1993-1995, Chief Executive Officer of Yachin Hakal Ltd. from 1991-1993 and Chairman of Axiom Ltd. from 1987-1991. Mr. Makov has also been a director of Bank Hapoalim Ltd. since October 2002, a director of Ramot at Tel Aviv University Ltd since 2001 and one of the founders and a director of the INNI - Israel National Nanotechnology Initiative since 2003. He received his B.Sc. in Agriculture from the Hebrew University in 1963 and his M.Sc. in Economics from the Hebrew University in 1965.
Irit Pinchasi, PhD Vice President, Global Innovative R&D Division Irit Pinchasi has been a key member of the Innovative R&D Division at since 1986. For several years, she managed all stages of drug development, market support and line extension for Copaxone, s first major innovative product. Following this, Dr. Pinchasi held other important roles in the Innovative R&D Division, including head of the Autoimmune Section. In this role, she directed all projects involving the identification and development of new drugs for auto-immune diseases and had overall responsibility for the development of a pipeline in these indications. Dr. Pinchasi then assumed global responsibility for the management of several professional units, including global data management and statistics, non-clinical safety, global regulatory affairs and new projects. Dr. Pinchasi was appointed to her current role in 2002. Dr. Pinchasi s educational background includes a B.SC, Biology, from Tel-Aviv University; M.S.c., with distinction, Biochemistry, Tel-Aviv University; Ph.D., Neurochemistry, Tel-Aviv University; and Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Dept. Virology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel. She is a member of the Israeli National Committee for Biotechnology, the Israeli BioMedical Research Assessment Committee and a winner of the Rothschild prize for innovation / export. Dr. Pinchasi has co-authored over 20 research articles.
Ety Klinger, PhD Senior Director, MS and Autoimmune Diseases, Global Innovative R&D Ety Klinger is the head of the MS and Autoimmune disease section in s Global Innovative R&D Division. Dr. Klinger has held several important positions within the division, including Project Leader, Global Pipeline Development, where she managed all stages of research, drug development, regulatory and market support for four innovative products developed for the treatment of MS, Lupus, Rheumatoid Arthritis and Myasthenia Gravis. Prior to this, Dr. Klinger established s Innovative R&D immunoanalytical laboratory, developed biological and immunological methods for Innovative R&D products and was involved in the chemistry, manufacturing and control, and regulatory aspects of Copaxone s approval. Dr. Klinger s educational background includes a B.SC, Life Sciences, from Hebrew University, Jerusalem; M.Sc. Biochemistry, Tel-Aviv University; and Ph.D. Biochemistry, Tel- Aviv University. Dr. Klinger has co-authored several research articles.
Miri Ben-Ami, MD Senior Director, Neurology, Global Innovative R&D Miri Ben-Ami is Senior Director and Head of the Neurology Development Section in the Global Innovative R&D Division at. Dr. Ben-Ami has held several significant positions at, including leading roles in innovative clinical development of products for Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson's Disease and Alzheimer's Disease. Dr. Ben-Ami received her medical degree from the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. She gained clinical experience in surgery, obstetrics and gynecology as Medical Officer in hospitals in London and during her obstetrics and gynecology residency in hospitals in Israel. She has also been trained in hypnotherapy at the Sackler School of Medicine. Dr. Ben-Ami serves as a member of the academic staff at University of Haifa, Department of Health Sciences and gives lectures at various conferences and educational programs.
C. Warren Olanow, MD Professor and Chairman, Department of Neurology and Professor of Neuroscience Mount Sinai School of Medicine C. Warren Olanow, M.D., FRCPC is the Henry P. and Georgette Goldschmidt Professor and Chairman of the Department of Neurology and Professor of Neuroscience at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. He is also the Chief of the Neurology Service at the Mount Sinai Hospital. He received his medical degree from the University of Toronto, performed his neurology training at the New York Neurological Institute at Columbia University, and did post-graduate studies in neuroanatomy at Columbia University. He served on the faculties of McGill University, Duke University, and the University of South Florida prior to assuming his present position. Dr. Olanow has authored more than 300 publications primarily related to Parkinson s disease and neurodegeneration. He is the Past President of the Movement Disorder Society, Treasurer of the American Neurological Association, and former President of the International Society of Motor Disturbances. He has been named an Honorary Professor at the University of London (Royal Free Hospital) and an Honorary Member of the French Neurological Society. He has served on numerous editorial and scientific advisory boards and has lectured at Universities and Conferences throughout the world.
Jeremy Shefner, MD, PhD Professor and Chairman, Department of Neurology SUNY Upstate Medical University Dr. Shefner is Professor and Chair of Neurology at Upstate Medical University, and Director of the Clinical Neurophysiology Laboratory and the MDA/ALS Research and Treatment Center in Syracuse, New York. He received a PhD in Psychology from the University of Illinois in 1976, followed by an NRSA research fellowship in sensory physiology. He received his MD with Distinction from Northwestern University in 1983, and graduated from the Harvard-Longwood Neurological Training Program in 1988. Following a fellowship in clinical neurophysiology at the Brigham and Women s Hospital in Boston, he joined the faculty of Harvard Medical School in 1990. Since moving to Upstate Medical University in 1996, Dr. Shefner was promoted to Professor of Neurology in 1998, and became Chair of Neurology in 2005. His research activities have been focused on clinical and animal studies of ALS, and he has authored more than 100 articles and chapters. He has served on multiple national committees of scientific organizations, and is Associate Editor of the journal Muscle and Nerve. He founded the Northeast ALS Clinical Trials Consortium (NEALS) in 1996, and currently serves as co-chair of NEALS. He has had a leadership role in 6 multicenter ALS clinical trials that have been administered through NEALS. Dr. Shefner has also been active in the development of a physiological outcome measure that might serve as a sensitive biomarker in trials of ALS. This outcome measure, called Motor Unit Number Estimation (MUNE) has been used in studies of both animals and patients with ALS. As ALS causes disability and death predominantly due to the loss of motor neurons, MUNE can serve as a sensitive surrogate marker with the potential to reduce both the duration and size of ALS trials.
Michael Fetell, MD Vice President, Medical and Clinical Assessment, Global Innovative Pipeline Management Michael Fetell is currently Vice President, Medical and Clinical Assessment, in the Global Pipeline Management Group at. Dr. Fetell received a BA in biochemistry from the University of Pennsylvania and earned his MD degree from Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Following his medical internship at Emory University, he performed his neurology residency training and served as chief resident at Albert Einstein Medical School, after which he completed a Neuromuscular Disease Fellowship at the Neurological Institute of Columbia University. From 1977 to 2002 Dr. Fetell was Professor of Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery and Head of the Neuro-Oncology Unit at the Neurological Institute of Columbia University in New York. He has authored numerous publications and has presented original research papers at national and international meetings. Frequently named to lists of Best Doctors in New York and America, Dr. Fetell also served as a reviewer for both neurology and oncology journals, and as a Senior Neurology Examiner for the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He has served on scientific advisory boards, NIH review boards, and has lectured at Universities and Conferences throughout the world. In 2003, he left academia to join IVAX Research as Vice President of Oncology and CNS, and continues to be actively involved in drug development in his current position at.
Yafit Stark, PhD Vice President, Chief Clinical Officer and Head of Oncology, Emerging Therapeutic Areas and Biogenerics Dr. Stark joined in 1987. From 1991 to 1994 she was based in the US where she established the Innovative R&D Division of USA and was responsible for the clinical development of Copaxone. Dr. Stark then established and managed the Innovative R&D Division s global clinical research and clinical development of all innovative products at. She currently has dual responsibilities as Chief Clinical Officer and Head of Oncology and Emerging Therapeutics within the Innovative R&D division Dr. Stark holds a Ph.D. degree in Medical Sciences/Pathology from the Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, and a Post-Doctorate in Immuno-Histopathology from Tel Aviv University and the Weizmann Institute of Science. She served as a member of the academic staff of the Sackler School of Medicine and continues to lecture on Pathology and Oncology Drug Development in the School of Medicine s College for Advanced Degrees. Dr. Stark is Co-Chairman of the European Planning Committee of the Association of Clinical Research Professionals, and is an active member of Tnufa, the Project Funding Evaluation Committee of the Chief Scientist s Office at the Israeli Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor. She also serves on the Board of Directors of the Israeli Research Association for Eye Health and Blindness Prevention and the International Association for Fighting Best Disease.
Aharon Schwartz, PhD Vice President, New Ventures and Strategic Business Planning Aharon Schwartz has been with since 1975 and has served as Vice President Strategic Business Planning and New Ventures since April 2002. He previously served as Vice President - Global Products Division since 1999 and Vice President of the Copaxone Division from 1995-1999. From 1993 to 1995, he served as Vice President Business Development/Export Division and served as head of the Pharmaceutical Division from 1989 to 1993. Dr. Schwartz holds a B.Sc. in Chemistry and Physics from Hebrew University, Jerusalem, M.Sc. in Organic Chemistry from Technion Institute, Haifa and he received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from the Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot.