Leadership
InSphero’s leadership team combines rich scientific and commercial expertise in 3D microtissue engineering, cell-based assays, laboratory automation, and industry-scale production and quality assurance. The strategic management expertise of our Board of Directors and Strategic Advisory Board members complements our leadership scheme.
Management Team
Jan Lichtenberg, PhD
CEO and Co-Founder
Jan Lichtenberg, PhD
CEO and Co-Founder
An engineer and laboratory automation expert with 20 years of experience in the life sciences, Jan earned his PhD in Microtechnology and Microfluidics at the University of Neuchâtel.
Co-founder of InSphero, former Head of R&D and Product Management in the medical-device company Hocoma AG and Uwatec AG. 2013 Entrepreneur of the Year Switzerland and ETH Zurich, University of Neuchâtel, EPF Lausanne, and University of Bremen alumni. Founder and former CEO of Advanced Micromachining Tools GmbH.
Madhu Nag, PhD
Chief Scientific Officer
Madhu Nag, PhD
Chief Scientific Officer
Madhu Lal-Nag earned her Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Molecular and Cellular Oncology from George Washington University and her master’s in Bioscience Business from Keck Graduate Institute.
She aims to bridge the gap between the academic and the translational aspects of cutting-edge science in oncology, metabolic diseases, and investigative toxicology. Using the results of current therapeutic regimens to creatively translate cutting-edge research to immediately serve patient needs.
Director of the Trans NIH RNAi Facility at the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS/NIH) and Program Director at USFDA.
Filip Henzler
Chief Financial Officer
Filip Henzler
Chief Financial Officer
A financial expert with more than 24 years of experience in private equity, controlling, and hands-on turn-around management. Filip has a degree (lic. oec) from the University of Zürich in Economics, majoring in Finance.
Paul Edgard Clémençon, MBA
Chief Business Officer
Paul Edgard Clémençon, MBA
Chief Business Officer
A seasoned commercial leader with 18+ years of experience in senior sales and marketing roles in small and large corporations. Paul holds a chemistry degree from the University of Applied Sciences of Northwestern Switzerland and an Executive MBA from the University of Zurich.
Prior to joining InSphero, Paul served as VP of Strategic Partnerships Europe at eMolecules Inc., a San Diego-based growth company providing solutions for drug discovery to big pharma, biotech, and academic institutions.
Wolfgang Moritz, PhD
Head of External Collaborations, Co-founder
Wolfgang Moritz, PhD
Head of External Collaborations, Co-founder
As one of the co-founders of InSphero, Wolfgang is an expert in production and assay methods for microtissues using laboratory-scale approaches. Wolfgang has an extensive background in clinical applications of microtissues including islet biology and diabetes drug discovery. Wolfgang earned a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Zurich.
Henriette Schneider, PhD
Head of IP
Henriette Schneider, PhD
Head of IP
Henriette joined InSphero in 2021. She holds a PhD in Molecular Biology from University of Zürich and is a qualified European Patent Attorney with more than 20 years’ experience as a patent attorney in pharmaceutical industry and technology transfer manager.
Marion Bavand, PhD, MBA
Head of Quality Assurance
Marion Bavand, PhD, MBA
Head of Quality Assurance
A seasoned Quality Assurance and Regulatory Affairs professional with 20+ years of experience in pre-market and post-market product development of life science biotech products and medical devices, including medical device vigilance and post-market surveillance. She earned her PhD in Molecular Biology at the University of Zurich and an MBA from Webster University, Geneva. Marion has hands-on experience in establishing Quality Systems supporting pre-clinical and clinical product development and product release to market.
Stina Näslund, MSc
Head of Human Resources
Stina Näslund, MSc
Head of Human Resources
Senior Human Resources Manager with 10 years of HR leadership experience and extensive HR expertise in a dynamic and growing environment. She has a Master’s Degree in Business and Economics with an International Specialization from Uppsala University in Sweden and HR Expert post-graduate studies.
Before joining InSphero, Stina built up the HR function for Equatex, a company spun out of UBS, where she managed a team as Group Head of Human Resources. Stina has also been HR Director at Moneypark AG.
David Fluri, PhD
Head of Operations
David Fluri, PhD
Head of Operations
Experienced scientist and member of the InSphero team since 2012. David has extensive industry expertise in advanced in vitro model development, standardization, and automation. He holds a PhD in molecular biotechnology from ETH Zurich.
Olivier Frey, PhD
Vice President, Technologies and Platforms
Olivier Frey, PhD
Vice President, Technologies and Platforms
Olivier Frey is Vice President and Head of Technologies & Platforms at InSphero and leads the Microphysiological Systems and Organ-on-Chip programs . He holds a Dr. Sc in Micro Engineering from the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne and an MSc in Microtechnology and Mechanics from ETH Zürich. Before joining InSphero, he was group leader and SNF Ambizione fellow at the Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering of ETH Zurich, Switzerland on integrated microfluidic systems for single cell handling and 3D tissue cultures.
Bruno Filippi, PhD
Vice President, Liver Safety
Bruno Filippi, PhD
Vice President, Liver Safety
Bruno is an experienced and versatile biologist who worked at the crossroads between cell biology, advanced in vitro models, and biochemistry in various European academic and technical research institutions for more than 15 years. Bruno holds a PhD in cell biology from the University of Zürich and thrives to turn innovation into applications.
Francisco Verdeguer, PhD
Vice President, Liver Disease
Francisco Verdeguer, PhD
Vice President, Liver Disease
Francisco has been the VP of Liver Discovery at InSphero since 2021. He obtained a PhD in molecular biology at the Pasteur Institute in Paris. He has been trained for 6 years as a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University/Dana Farber Cancer Institute and Karolinska Institute where he focused on the molecular basis of metabolic disorders. He was appointed Assistant Professor at the University of Zurich between 2016 and 2021 where he led a basic research group and has identified novel mechanisms of energy balance regulation.
Burcak Yesildag, PhD
Vice President, Islet Biology
Burcak Yesildag, PhD
Vice President, Islet Biology
Burcak Yesildag obtained her master’s degree in Biochemistry and her PhD degree in Translational Biomedicine from ETH Zurich, where she specialized in pancreatic islet biology. In 2015, Dr. Yesildag joined the InSphero team to establish the company as a strong contender in the field of diabetes research. Her team is facilitating the adoption of InSphero’s innovative platforms, based on primary or stem-cell derived human cells, by a broad scientific community around the world, aiming to support translation of new discoveries into much needed therapeutic interventions.
Laure-Anne Ligeon, PhD
Team Lead Oncology & Immunology
Laure-Anne Ligeon, PhD
Team Lead Oncology & Immunology
Laure-Anne Ligeon is the Team Lead of Oncology and Immunology Group at InSphero. She focuses on developing strategies and assays by bringing together human immunology and cell biology to model the complexity of tumor microenvironment for drug testing. Laure-Anne holds a PhD in molecular cell biology from University of Lille – Pasteur institute. Prior to joining InSphero she was a Senior Scientist at the Institute of Experimental Immunology, University of Zürich.
Scientific Advisory Board
Prof. Thomas Hartung, MD, PhD
Scientific Advisor - Liver Safety
Prof. Thomas Hartung, MD, PhD
Scientific Advisor - Liver Safety
Prof. Hartung is a Professor of Evidence-based Toxicology and Director of the Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, and Professor of Pharmacology and Toxicology at the University of Konstanz. He is a passionate advocate for replacing animal testing with more ethical and predictive in vitro models and is investigating new applications for big data and artificial intelligence in toxicity testing.
Prof. Matthias von Herrath, MD
Scientific Advisor - Islet Biology
Prof. Matthias von Herrath, MD
Scientific Advisor - Islet Biology
Prof. von Herrath holds a dual appointment as Vice President and Senior Medical Officer at Novo Nordisk and Professor at the La Jolla Institute for Immunology Center for Autoimmunity and Inflammation. One of the world’s leading type 1 diabetes researchers, he is committed to clinical translation of immune-based interventions in autoimmune and metabolic diseases.
Prof. Decio Eizirik, MD, PhD
Scientific Advisor - Islet Biology
Prof. Decio Eizirik, MD, PhD
Scientific Advisor - Islet Biology
Decio L. Eizirik, M.D., Ph.D., is Professor at the ULB Center for Diabetes Research. He has published more than 400 full papers and reviews with an h-index of 92. He has received several national and international prizes, including the JDRF “Diabetes Care Research Award”, 1998, the EASD “2012 Albert Renold Prize Lecture” and the nPOD 2023 “George Eisenbarth Memorial Lecture”, and was the Scientific (Honorary) Secretary of the EASD. His research focus on the mechanisms of pancreatic beta cell dysfunction and death in type 1 diabetes and on the “dialogue” between beta cells and the immune system.
Prof. Nikolai Naoumov, MD, PhD
Scientific Advisor - Liver Disease
Prof. Nikolai Naoumov, MD, PhD
Scientific Advisor - Liver Disease
Prof. Naoumov is a is distinguished physician-scientist, with a professional career spanning academia, clinical care, and drug development. He is a Fellow of both the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of Pathologists. His research has integrated immunology, molecular biology, and translational medicine in elucidating virus-host interactions and mechanisms of liver injury.