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COVID-19, multi-stem clinical trials and a new way of fundraising
Guest: Gil Van Bokkelen, Founder, Chairman and CEO at Athersys Inc.
In this episode of Conversations in Healthcare, Mike Ward, Global Head of Thought Leadership talks to Gil Van Bokkelen, founder, chairman and CEO of Athersys Inc. They discuss the company’s clinical program that is focusing on a special class of stem cells which display very unique properties and have been obtained from healthy young consenting donors. Mike and Gil talk about how Athersys was already working on an approach to treat patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome before the pandemic emerged and the challenges they face to tackle their COVID-19 strategy. Also, Gil shares how Athersys was successful in raising nearly $58m in April and what he thinks the company needs to do to become a multibillion-dollar company.
About our Guest
Gil Van Bokkelen, Founder, Chairman and CEO at Athersys Inc.
Dr. Gil Van Bokkelen has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors at Athersys since August 2000, and as CEO since the company was formed, overseeing the growth and development of the primary business operations at the company and the transition from a venture-backed start-up to a NASDAQ listed public company. He also serves as Chairman of the National Center for Regenerative Medicine. Dr. Van Bokkelen received his Ph.D. in Genetics from Stanford University School of Medicine and earned degrees in both Economics and Molecular Biology at the University of California at Berkeley.
About our Host
Mike Ward, Head of Thought Leadership, DRG
Mike Ward serves as Global Head of Thought Leadership at Decision Resources Group (DRG), part of Clarivate. As both a journalist and analyst, Mike has been writing, analyzing and commenting on the life sciences industry for more than 35 years. He has held editorial and content leadership roles at various publications and organizations across the industry.
