Who We Are

Marc joined Azura Ophthalmics as Chief Executive Officer in 2016 and has over 25 years of commercialization experience in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, with 19 years of those years working in Ophthalmology. Prior to Azura Ophthalmics, Marc was Vice President of Global Marketing for Oculeve, a San Francisco start up that developed the first neurostimulatory device for the treatment of dry eye disease, which was acquired by Allergan in 2015. Prior to his work at Oculeve, Marc spent 14 years at Allergan working across the Asia-Pacific region and the U.S. as Vice President Global Strategic Marketing for Eye Care. In this role, Marc led the early commercial development of all internal R&D projects across the Ophthalmic franchise as well as focused on in-licensing or acquiring external assets. He also worked across the retina, dry eye, glaucoma and ocular surface disease franchises at Allergen. Marc has served on the Board of Directors of Elastagen Pty Ltd an Australian start up that developed medical aesthetic treatments, acquired by Allergan (Apr 2018). He has also served on the Board of Directors of Combangio Inc, acquired by Kala Pharmaceuticals (Nov 2021) and Kedalion Therapeutics acquired by Novartis (June 2022).

Yair co-founded Azura Ophthalmics in 2014 and now serves as the company’s Chief Technology Officer. His entrepreneurial career started at Notal Vision, now a commercial-stage company developing home diagnostics for age-related macular degeneration (ADM). In 2008 Yair joined Forsight Labs in California, where he served as CTO of Nexis Vision, a contact lens developer for post-surgical treatment and astigmatism. He was also CMO and co-founder of Forsight Vision 4 (acquired by Roche-Genentech) and Forsight Vision 5 (acquired by Allergan). In 2013 Yair returned to Israel where he co-founded Forsight Vision 6, makers of intraocular lens (IOL), Pres-By Vision, an accommodating contact lens developer. Yair received his medical degree from Tel-Aviv University in Israel.

Charles has served as the Chief Medical Officer at Azura Ophthalmics since July of 2017. He has a successful track record spanning 22 years across three major pharmaceutical companies with experience in devices and branded products for both the anterior and posterior segments of the eye and generic drug development. His expertise includes non-invasive medical diagnostics for developing, validating and implementing novel endpoints to support both global drug approvals and reimbursement dossiers. Prior to Azura Ophthalmics, Charles served as Global Team Leader for Allergan, Plc., where he managed programs supporting the Restasis franchise, presbyopia and novel Phase 1 and 2a programs across indications. Before joining Allergan, Plc., Charles worked for Pfizer Inc. as Ophthalmology Therapeutic Area Clinical Lead, responsible for the technical review of all ongoing clinical development programs and the Ophthalmology Development Team Leader for glaucoma and dry eye. Some of the programs he directed included CP-690-550, a Janus Kinase Inhibitor for Dry Eye Disease, and PF-03187207, NO-Donating Latanoprost, for Primary Open Angle Glaucoma. Charles began his career at Alcon Research Ltd. where he was responsible for the design and implementation of numerous programs developing novel treatments for ocular hypertension and glaucomatous optic neuropathy including Betaxolol, Travatan, Travance, Brimonidine tartrate and numerous Phase 1 and 2a programs. Charles obtained his Ph.D. from the University of California at San Diego’s Shiley Eye Institute.

Ashwin Agarwal has served as Chief Financial Officer at Azura Ophthalmics since April 2021. Ashwin has over 25 years of financial, operations, investor relations, business strategy and leadership experience at both private and publicly traded companies spanning from early-stage to global, multi-billion organizations. Before joining, Azura Ophthalmics, Ashwin served as Vice President, Finance, Investor Relations, and Treasury at Evolus, Inc. During his tenure at Evolus, Ashwin successfully co-led multiple public financing rounds while strengthening the balance sheet and driving organizational and operational efficiencies to accelerate revenue growth and improving cash flow. Prior to Evolus, Ashwin served as Vice President, Corporate Strategy for Alder Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. where he was responsible for investor relations, strategic financial planning, commercial market assessment and $250 million in public financing. Before Alder, Ashwin held roles of increasing responsibility at Allergan, Inc. for fifteen years, most recently as Senior Director of Finance and Investor Relations. Ashwin began his career at KPMG where he spent three years in the auditing practice. He holds an M.B.A. with an emphasis in Corporate Finance from the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business and a B.A. in Accounting from California State University, Fullerton.

Hila joined Azura Ophthalmics in 2017 as Vice President of R&D and now serves as Chief Research and Development Officer. With more than 15 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, Hila has served in numerous global R&D management positions. Most recently, she spent three years at Teva Pharmaceuticals Global R&D as Director of New Technologies Entities, leading the Israeli NTE R&D team developing 505b2 products from proof of concept to clinical-stage, focusing on oral solid doses and nasal formulations. Prior to her time at Teva, Hila worked at a number of startup companies including Marval Pharma where she served as Director of R&D, leading the development of controlled release contrast agents and cancer treatments. Hila was part of the Alnylam Pharmaceutical R&D team where she led the research team responsible for nucleic acid formulation development and was a key contributor to the first approved siRNA Drug while at Alnylam. She also held positions at Entrega and Enlight Biosciences. Hila completed her post-doctoral training at MIT and Harvard Medical School in the fields of drug development and controlled release of pain and cancer treatment drugs. Hila holds a Ph.D. in Pharmacy from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and is a pharmacist in training from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Shimon Nahum has served as Senior Manager Formulation and CMC of Azura Ophthalmics since 2018. Shimon has 10 years of formulation development experience across a variety of dosage forms in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. Prior to joining Azura Ophthalmics, Shimon was Project Coordinator at Teva Pharmaceuticals within the specialty R&D unit in charge of the development of New Chemical Entities and Drug-Device combinations. While at Teva, Shimon also worked across the generics unit responsible for the development of nasal products. Before Teva, he spent four years at sister companies Tree of Life Pharma and Panaxia Pharmaceuticals as Formulation Team Leader, developing over the counter drug products, dermal fillers and cannabis-based treatments. Shimon was the key developer in formulation and analytical method development enabling the business to establish spin-offs including Luminera Ltd, a manufacturer of injectable medical devices in the medical aesthetic field, and Panaxia Medical Cannabis Ltd. Shimon earned his B.S. in pharmacy from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and his B.S. in Chemistry from Bar-llan University.

Omer co-founded Azura Ophthalmics in 2014 and now serves as Director of Scientific Research. Omer has more than 18 years of innovation and development experience in the ophthalmic industry. In 2015, Omer co-founded PresBy LTD., a company which focused on the development of contact lenses for people with presbyopia and completed the first contact lens prototype for development. Prior, Omer served as CSO of NotalVision LTD, a company dedicated to early detection of retinal diseases. During his tenure at NotalVision, he helped develop “Foresee Home,” a home device that combines visual field testing for Age-related Macular Degeneration diagnosis and home monitoring by tele-medicine. Before Omer entered the ophthalmic innovation industry, he was a clinician in the Ophthalmology Department of the Rabin Medical Center in Israel. He has published scientific papers in the field of ophthalmology and is an owner of numerous allowed patents. Omer earned his medical degree at the Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University, Be’er-Sheva, Israel.

Abby Aharonov has served as Office Manager of Azura Ophthalmics since September 2020. She manages and oversees the day-to-day administrative functions of Azura. With over 20 years of experience in office management, human resources and accounting, Abby developed office managerial experience in a variety of fields including biotech and pharmaceutical companies. Prior to Azura, Abby served as Office Manager at Apollo Network Services where she oversaw all onsite operations of the company. Before Apollo Network Services, she worked at BioBlast Pharma as Office Manager and Personal Assistant to the CEO. Abby began her career in office management at Vishay Intertechnology, Inc., where she served as Site Manager & Personal Assistant to Global Senior VP. Abby earned her B.A. from the University of South Florida.

Steve serves as Managing Director of Healthcare Ventures at Ziff Capital Partners where he co-leads the firm’s efforts towards investing in and facilitating the development of companies with potentially transformative technologies that emphasize cellular and molecular approaches to human disease. He brings over 20 years of experience building and leading world-class, integrated, translational, value-based health care systems and transformational biotechnology companies. Steve co-founded Spark Therapeutics to develop and commercialize the preclinical and clinical gene therapy programs being advanced at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and other institutions. He served as Spark’s board chair from its founding through its acquisition in 2019, which included leading the company through a successful IPO and the launch of an approved commercial product, which was the first gene therapy for an inherited disease approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and European Medicines Agency. Steve formerly held chief executive positions at CHOP and University of Miami Health System. He is a member of the board of directors of WW (formerly Weight Watchers International), Orchard Therapeutics, AsclepiX Therapeutics (Board Chair), ImVaX, Platelet Biogenesis (Board Chair), Affinivax and 89Bio (Board Chair). He is also an independent trustee of the Brigham and Women’s Physician Organization at Mass General Brigham and Case Western Reserve University. Steve holds a B.A. in mathematics and an M.D. from Case Western Reserve University.

Marc joined Azura Ophthalmics as Chief Executive Officer in 2016 and has over 25 years of commercialization experience in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, with 19 years of those years working in Ophthalmology. Prior to Azura Ophthalmics, Marc was Vice President of Global Marketing for Oculeve, a San Francisco start up that developed the first neurostimulatory device for the treatment of dry eye disease, which was acquired by Allergan in 2015. Prior to his work at Oculeve, Marc spent 14 years at Allergan working across the Asia-Pacific region and the US as Vice President Global Strategic Marketing for Eye Care. In this role, Marc led the early commercial development of all internal R&D projects across the Ophthalmic franchise as well as focused on in-licensing or acquiring external assets. He also worked across the retina, dry eye, glaucoma and ocular surface disease franchises at Allergen. Marc has served on the Board of Directors of Elastagen Pty Ltd an Australian start up that developed medical aesthetic treatments, acquired by Allergan (Apr 2018). He has also served on the Board of Directors of Combangio Inc, acquired by Kala Pharmaceuticals (Nov 2021) and Kedalion Therapeutics acquired by Novartis (June 2022).

Yair co-founded Azura Ophthalmics in 2014 and now serves as the company’s Chief Technology Officer. His entrepreneurial career started at Notal Vision, now a commercial-stage company developing home diagnostics for age-related macular degeneration (ADM). In 2008 Yair joined Forsight Labs in California, where he served as CTO of Nexis Vision, a contact lens developer for post-surgical treatment and astigmatism. He was also CMO and co-founder of Forsight Vision 4 (acquired by Roche-Genentech) and Forsight Vision 5 (acquired by Allergan). In 2013 Yair returned to Israel where he co-founded Forsight Vision 6, makers of intraocular lens (IOL), Pres-By Vision, an accommodating contact lens developer. Yair received his medical degree from Tel-Aviv University in Israel.

Chris is a Founding Partner and Managing Director of Brandon Capital Partners and Chief Executive Officer of the Medical Research Commercialisation Fund. Chris previously was Director of Commercialisation at the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute, Melbourne, Australia. He was responsible for the commercialisation of technologies developed at the Baker and the Alfred Hospital, including the management of local and international spinout companies. Prior, Chris was the Manager of the Biotechnology Team at Melbourne Ventures, the commercialisation company of the University of Melbourne. Concurrently during this period, he was an Investment Manager for, and on the investment committee of, Uniseed Pty Ltd, a $60 million pre-seed fund. Chris has international experience with Leiras Pharmaceuticals in Finland, a wholly owned subsidiary of Schering AG, working for their Business Development group. He successfully moved companies to the US, securing investment from US investors for these companies. Past directorships have seen Chris involved directly in the management, fundraising, and successful spinouts of various companies in the life sciences industry. Chris is currently a Director of OccuRx Pty Ltd, Osprey Medical Inc., PolyActiva Pty Ltd, Global Kinetics Corporation, QueOncology Pty Ltd, Azura Ophthalmics, EBR Systems Inc and Cardiora Pty Ltd. Chris has been awarded with the AusBiotech Johnson & Johnson Industry Leadership Award. Chris was also Chairperson of Fibrotech Therapeutics at the time of its successful sale to Shire and a Director of Spinifex Pharmaceuticals at the time of its sale to Novartis. Chris has a first-class Honors degree in Science and a Ph.D. in Endocrinology and Physiology from the University of Melbourne and he has completed the Private Equity and Venture Capital Program at Harvard Business School in Boston, MA.

Heather is Director of Oxford Biomedica. Prior to Oxford Biomedica, Heather served as Managing Partner at Pivotal BioVentures. She previously served as Firm Partner and Managing Director of TPG Biotech. Prior to joining TPG Biotech, Heather spent two years at JP Morgan Partners where she focused on medical device and biotechnology venture capital investing. Prior to JP Morgan Partners, Heather was an Entrepreneur‐in‐Residence with New Enterprise Associates. She also spent five years at McKinsey & Co. in New York, where she was a leader of their pharmaceutical and medical products consulting practice. She advised large pharmaceutical companies and biotechnology companies on critical strategic issues such as R&D portfolio prioritization, M&A opportunities, new technology acquisitions, new product launches and product growth strategies. She currently serves on the board of directors of Albireo, Inc. (ALBO); Alder BioPharmaceuticals (ALDR); Otonomy, Inc. (OTIC); Unchained Labs, Avalyn Pharmaceuticals, and Entasis Inc. She has previously served on multiple private boards including the boards of Aptalis Pharma (acquired by Forest Labs in 2014), and Elevation Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Sunovion in 2012). She was responsible for TPG Biotech’s investment in Par Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Endo in 2015). Heather earned her B.Sc. in biochemistry from the University of London and M.D. from the University of Oxford. She completed a post‐doctoral fellowship in molecular biology at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard University and trained in Internal Medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital and sub‐specialized in Gastroenterology and Hepatology at UCSF. During her academic medical career, she was the recipient of a Fulbright Scholarship, a Fulbright Cancer Research Scholarship, a Harlech Scholarship and a Science and Engineering Research Council Post‐Doctoral Fellowship Award. Heather also serves on the Board of Trustees for the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, Saint Luke’s School and the Harlech Scholarship Foundation.

Dr. Eric Donnenfeld is a trustee of Dartmouth Medical School and a clinical professor of ophthalmology at NYU. He was a resident and Chief Resident at Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital and completed a Cornea Fellowship at Wills Eye Hospital. He is the founding partner of Ophthalmic Consultants of Long Island, one of the largest practices in the United States. Dr. Donnenfeld is the Editor-in-Chief of EyeWorld and Editor-in-Chief emeritus of Cataract and Refractive Surgery Today. He has written over 215 peer-reviewed papers on cornea, external disease, cataract and refractive surgery, 60 book chapters and three books. He is on the editorial board of nine journals and has participated in over 60 FDA trials. Dr. Donnenfeld was named America’s Best Eye Doctor in 2021 by Newsweek, Ophthalmology Management named him one of the top 25 innovators in ophthalmology over the past 25 years and The Ophthalmologist named him one of the 50 most influential people in ophthalmology. Dr. Donnenfeld is a Fellow of the American Academy of Ophthalmology and has received the Academy’s Honor Award, Senior Honor Award, Life Achievement Honor Award and Secretariat Award. Dr. Donnenfeld is Surgical Director of the Lions Eye Bank for Long Island. He served as President of ASCRS, the Nassau Surgical Society, the International Ocular Microbiology and Immunology Group, the Ophthalmology Division of the Nassau Academy of Medicine, and is the incoming President of the International Intraocular Implant Society.

Dr. Preeya Gupta is the Managing Director of Triangle Eye Consultants in Raleigh, NC and an Adjunct Associate Professor of Ophthalmology at Tulane University School of Medicine. Dr. Gupta previously served on the faculty at Duke University Eye Center as a Tenured Associate Professor of Ophthalmology from 2011 through 2021. Dr. Gupta earned her medical degree at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago and graduated with Alpha Omega Alpha honors. She fulfilled her residency in ophthalmology at Duke University Eye Center in Durham, NC, where she earned the K. Alexander Dastgheib Surgical Excellence Award, and then completed a fellowship in Cornea and Refractive Surgery at Minnesota Eye Consultants in Minneapolis. Dr. Gupta has authored many articles in the peer-reviewed literature and serves as an invited reviewer to journals such as Ophthalmology, American Journal of Ophthalmology and Journal of Refractive Surgery. She has also written several book chapters about corneal disease and ophthalmic surgery, and served as an editor of the well-known series, Curbside Consultation in Cataract Surgery. She also holds editorial board positions for the ONE Network of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, International Society of Refractive Surgery Multimedia Board and BCSC Refractive Surgery Committee Board. Dr. Gupta serves as an elected member of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS) Cornea clinical committee and is also the President of the Vanguard Ophthalmology Society. She has given presentations both nationally and internationally, including invited lectures, national meeting presentations and education of residents and fellows. Dr. Gupta has been awarded the National Millennial Eye Outstanding Female in Ophthalmology Award and has received the AAO Achievement Award. She is also an elected American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) Council member.

Dr. John Hovanesian is an internationally recognized leader and innovator in cataract, corneal and laser eye surgery. Newsweek has recognized him among the top 35 eye surgeons in the U.S., out of 17,000 eligible colleagues, based on a poll of his peers. The Ophthalmologist, a U.K. publication, has named him among the world’s 100 most influential people in eye care. A board-certified ophthalmologist and faculty member at the UCLA Stein Eye Institute, he has published two widely used eye surgery textbooks — one on the subject of refractive cataract surgery and one on pterygium surgery. He has been invited to lecture to surgeons on six continents, has authored dozens of peer-reviewed articles, and has produced many frequently referenced surgical teaching videos. He is an associate editor for the world’s most widely read eye care trade journal and serves on several other editorial boards. Dr. Hovanesian is a member of the prestigious International Intraocular Implant Club that includes the world’s 300 most respected cataract surgeons. He is a recipient of the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s Senior Achievement Award and has been named a Distinguished Eagle Scout by the Boy Scouts of America for internationally recognized contributions to his professional field. Dr. Hovanesian received his medical degree from the University of Michigan Medical School and completed his residency at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, where he was selected to serve as Chief Resident. He also completed a two-year fellowship in refractive and corneal surgery at the Stein Eye Institute at UCLA. He joined Harvard Eye Associates in 1999. Dr. Hovanesian has made dozens of volunteer surgical trips to third world countries, including Armenia, Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador and Fiji and is a founding board member of the Armenian Eye Care Project. He has also spent over 25 years volunteering as a board member, board chairman and as an adult leader for the Boy Scouts of America, which has presented him with numerous service awards.

Dr. Terry Kim is a Professor of Ophthalmology at Duke University School of Medicine and serves as Chief of the Cornea and External Disease Division and Director of the Refractive Surgery Service at Duke University Eye Center. Dr. Kim’s clinical and surgical expertise has earned him recognition from annual listings such as America’s Best Eye Doctors (Newsweek), Best Doctors in America, Best Doctors in North Carolina, America’s Top Ophthalmologists and The Ophthalmologist Power List. Dr. Kim has been featured in stories on the Discovery Channel, The Wall Street Journal and Sports Illustrated. Dr. Kim has delivered more than 400 invited lectureships and has published over 400 peer-reviewed journal articles, textbook chapters, scientific abstracts and 5 well-respected textbooks on corneal diseases, corneal transplantation and cataract surgery. Dr. Kim has earned honors and grants from the AAO, ASCRS, National Institutes of Health, the Fight for Sight/Research to Prevent Blindness Foundation and the Heed Ophthalmic Foundation. Dr. Kim serves on the Executive Committee of ASCRS as Past President, the Annual Program Committee of the AAO, and the Board of Directors of the Cornea Society. He also sits on the Editorial Board for several peer-reviewed journals and trade publications, including Cornea, Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, Ocular Surgery News, EyeWorld, EyeNet and Cataract & Refractive Surgery Today. Dr. Kim serves as Consultant to the Ophthalmic Devices Panel of the FDA, Consultant Ophthalmologist for the Duke Men’s Basketball Team and Consultant to numerous ophthalmic companies.

Dr. Lisa Nijm is an accomplished corneal surgeon, licensed attorney, teacher and innovator in the field of ophthalmology. She is the founder of Warrenville EyeCare & LASIK and serves as an assistant clinical professor of ophthalmology at the University of Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary. Dr. Nijm advises leading medical device and pharmaceutical companies on new clinical innovations and strategic initiatives. She serves on the board of directors for the Cornea Society, the American Academy of Ophthalmology Executives and as the CEO of Women in Ophthalmology, where she has led the organization through exponential growth. Dr. Nijm has received numerous awards for her work and is an invited international lecturer and a published, peer-reviewed author. She has repeatedly been ranked as one of the most influential ophthalmologists worldwide and can be found on The Ophthalmologist’s Power List, Newsweek’s America’s Best Ophthalmologists, and Castle Connolly’s Top Doctors. Dr. Nijm also created two highly acclaimed educational resources for physicians, M.D. Negotiation & Real World Ophthalmology (RWO), a free, peer-to-peer, educational resource to help young ophthalmologists navigate the changing landscape of ophthalmology. In less than a year, RWO attracted a global audience of over 2000 young ophthalmologists. Utilizing her unique M.D./J.D. background, Dr. Nijm has conducted over 40 negotiation workshops at academic institutions, ophthalmic conferences, and executive leadership development trainings.

Dr. Laura M Periman is a board-certified ophthalmologist, fellowship- trained cornea and refractive surgeon and Ocular Surface Disease Expert. She knew she wanted to be a doctor since the age of 12 and has always seen eyes as the key defining feature of every person. Her interests in molecular biology began with winning the Terry Spies Memorial Scholarship at the Oregon Regional Primate Research Center as an undergraduate at Willamette University in Salem, OR. Her interests in immunopathophysiology took root during her work in Research and Development at Immunex Corporation in the Molecular Biology Department prior to attending medical school at the University of Washington in Seattle, WA. During medical school, she received the Rex and Arlene Garrison Oncology Fellowship, the Western Medical Student Research Committee Award for Excellence and was elected to the honor society, Alpha Omega Alpha. Upon graduation with honors, she also received the Georgianna Kirby Award for outstanding patient dedication and compassion. Dr. Periman completed her Ophthalmology Residency as well as Cornea/Refractive Fellowship at the University of Washington in Seattle. She has 17 peer-reviewed publications and has written extensively on the topic of Ocular Surface Disease (OSD). Her unique and passionate perspective on OSD stems from her work in immunopathophysiology. She is an innovator and enthusiastic international speaker who loves bridging the gap between basic science, clinical practice and patient compassion. Whether delivering top-line care in the sacred 1:1 patient encounter or expanding awareness on the worldwide impacts of Dry Eye Disease, Dr. Periman thrives on contributing to the greater good. As Founder and Director of Dry Eye Services and Clinical Research at Periman Eye Institute in Seattle, WA she combines her clinical care passion, scientific drive and innovative creativity to provide first class Ocular Surface Disease management.

Dr. William Trattler is a board-certified refractive, corneal and cataract eye surgeon at the Center for Excellence in Eye Care in Miami, FL. He received his bachelor’s degree with honors from Dartmouth College and his Doctorate of Medicine degree from University of Miami School of Medicine, where he graduated in 1992 with Distinction in Research. He completed his ophthalmology residency at University of Pennsylvania, Scheie Eye Institute and spent a year in training in Cornea and Refractive Surgery at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. During his Corneal Fellowship, Dr. Trattler performed a wide variety of refractive surgeries, including PRK, LASIK, LASEK, ICL, and Refractive Lens Exchange. He is a leader in the field of corneal collagen crosslinking for keratoconus, Pellucid, and post-LASIK ectasia, and has a strong focus in Dry Eye, MGD, and treatments for presbyopia. Dr. Trattler currently serves as Chairman of the Board for the American-European Congress of Ophthalmic Surgery (AECOS), and previously served on the Executive Board of the International Society of Refractive Surgery (ISRS), and as the Program Director of the Advanced Refractive Congress (ARC). Dr. Trattler currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Refractive Surgery Alliance (RSA), is the Co-Program Director for AECOS Deer Valley, and is on the program committee for Hawaiian Eye, OSN NY, Modern Optometry Live, and Cedars Aspens Annual Conference. Dr. Trattler has authored many articles and abstracts, both peer and non-peer-reviewed, focused on crosslinking for keratoconus, cataract surgery, multifocal IOLs, LASIK, laser vision correction, dry eye and MGD. He co-authored Microbiology Made Ridiculously Simple, a textbook used by medical, nursing and veterinary students throughout the world, and Review of Ophthalmology, used by ophthalmology residents to prepare for their written board exams. He has also given more than 400 presentations at regional, national and international conferences, and he has participated in over 70 clinical trials, including both device and pharmaceutical.

Limor has served as the Senior Director of Pre-Clinical at Azura Ophthalmics since 2020 and holds more than 14 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries. Limor has led the development of molecules in numerous R&D management positions including Scientific Management Boards, Takeda and Johnson & Johnson. Most recently, she managed the preclinical programs of ten startup companies in the FutuRx accelerator. She led teams in multinational environments including workflow setup, milestones, timelines, disciplined plan execution, rigorous performance metrics and budgets and accelerated market entry. Limor was part of the QBI Pharmaceutical R&D team and drove the development of siRNA to treat ophthalmologic (chronic) and CNS (Glioblastoma) diseases, she also supported the business development and IP units. Limor managed new drug development at Chiasma (Nasdaq:CHMA) where she developed new oral formulations of poorly absorbed small molecules and peptides for various indications including acromegaly. Limor earned her D.V.M degree as well as her B.S. and M.S. from the Hebrew University.

Luba joined Azura Ophthalmics in 2020 as Director of Pre-Clinical Development, bringing with her more than 20 years of drug development experience. In her previous role with Galmed Pharmaceuticals, she served as Director of Preclinical and Scientific Affairs and was responsible for due diligence, regulatory strategy and the preclinical development pathway. Prior to Galmed Pharmaceuticals, Luba spent 18 years at Teva Pharmaceuticals within the Pharmacological Department in the Global R&D Division. At Teva, she was responsible for due diligence and the development of innovative pharmaceutical drug products, including small molecules and biologics and early lead selection up to NDA/BLA submission. Earlier in her career, Luba served for 10 years as a senior researcher in the Pharmacology Department at Tel Aviv University, in Professor J. Ishay’s Laboratory, focused on Vespa Orientalis venom research and has published 19 papers. Luba holds an M.Sc. in pharmacology and physiology from Tel-Aviv University, Israel.

Anat Naschitz is a Venture Partner at OrbiMed, a preeminent global healthcare investment firm with $15 billion under management across public and private asset classes. The firm covers the entire healthcare spectrum, investing in biopharmaceuticals, medical devices and digital health. Anat has over 20 years of healthcare experience, and currently serves on the boards of biotech, digital health and medical device companies. Previously Anat created, invested in and advised companies across the entire healthcare spectrum in terms of stage and subject matter. Prior to OrbiMed, Anat worked for Apax Partners where she focused on life sciences investments. Previously, she was an Associate Partner with McKinsey in London, where she managed strategy and M&A projects for senior management of the world’s preeminent pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. Among other accomplishments, Anat led pharmaceutical spinout work resulting in the creation of European biotech companies valued at billions of dollars. Anat earned her M.B.A. at INSEAD and her LL.B. at Tel Aviv University.