Dr. Bartelmez is BetaStem’s lead investigator with > 30 years of experience with the biology and therapeutic application of human bone marrow derived stem cells. Dr. Bartelmez discovered a key role of TGFβ1 expressed in bone marrow derived stem cells in the blood, bone marrow. He is first inventor of 8 US patents and has been PI on 14 NIH grants. He has served full time for BetaStem since 2006 and previously was CEO of Ixion Biotechnology.

>30 years of management and leadership experience in the medical therapeutic and diagnostic technology industry,. Mr Taylor has managed “first in kind” such as the landmark technology Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) imaging systems for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic macular edema (DME). Recently, Jim was CEO of a venture-funded company bringing an innovative therapy for AMD from concept through to commercialization.

Dr Garcia is devoted to BetaStem Therapy. > 42 years of experience in the field of ophthalmology, Dr. Garcia holds the Bernice Weingarten Chair in Ophthalmology at UT Medical School at Houston. His clinical practices in Houston TX, have over 2000 active diabetic patients in his group’s database. He has previously prepared IND applications and has managed phase 1 and 2 clinical trials. Dr Garcia has published over 130 articles and 5 books.

Dr Iversen is a recognized expert in RNA therapeutics (namely, PMO-antisense). Dr. Iversen and Dr. Bartelmez have been collaborating on stem cell projects since 1997. He has taken R&D projects to IND and clinical trials to the commercial market. Dr Iversen obtained the first PMO-based IND to systemically treat patients with leukemia and obtained PMO-based INDs to treat Ebola and Marburg viruses. He has published 204 papers and 16 book chapters.

Principal Investigator in the Leukocyte Biology Section, National Cancer Institute, NIH, MD. Dr Ruscetti is an internationally recognized expert in TGFbeta regulatory mechanisms and has published >400 papers.. He has been working closely with Dr. Bartelmez on studies of TGF-beta regulation of bone marrow derived in stem cells since 1994. In addition, Dr. Ruscetti is also regarded as the Father of Human Retrovirology after his discovery in 1980.

Dr. Flanagan has over 12 years of in vivo pre-clinical experience in small and large animal models in a CRO setting, from early discovery through Safety studies (non GLP and GLP). Her expertise is type 1 and type 2 diabetes with an in depth knowledge of state and federal regulations. Dr. Flanagan plays key role to ensure pre-clinical industry standards and best practices are met through the use of CROs to develop the BetaStem Therapy.

Dr. Triolo is an expert in clinical cell therapy manufacturing. He is Director of Evelyn H. Griffin Stem Cell Therapeutics Research Laboratory and the Judith R. Hoffberger Cellular Therapeutics Transitional Laboratory at UT Health Center, Houston. He leads the translation, scale-up and validation of promising new therapeutic technologies developed by scientists at a pre-clinical level into clinical-grade processes for clinical applications.