Charlie Latham

Dr Tony Simula was previously Manager, Development & Commercialisation at the Cooperative Research Centre for Cell Therapy Manufacturing (CTM CRC), where he oversaw the transition of technologies from the proof-of-concept stage through to pilot-scale, adding value prior to their commercialisation. Dr Simula has worked in private and public sector research organisations, including two previous Cooperative Research Centres, and publicly listed Australian and European companies of varying sizes. He has 10 years’ international academic research experience, followed by 20 years in the commercial biopharmaceutical/cell therapy industry.

Dr Sue Low is Operations Manager at TekCyte and oversees the daily activities at the company’s cleanroom facility and laboratories. With a background in biomaterials development, Dr Low received her PhD on dissolvable ocular biomaterials in 2008. After, Dr Low worked in a similar field, but with a focus on plasma surface modification to improve biomaterial compatibility. With an interest in the downstream processes of medical device development, Dr Low also began training to work under GMP cleanroom conditions. This involved creation of a new Quality System for the TekCyte facility and maintaining a cleanroom facility to GMP requirements.

Dr Leanna Read has executive, board and investment experience across a range of technology-based enterprises, particularly biotechnology. She was CEO and Chair of the CRC for Cell Therapy Manufacturing (CTM CRC) that established TekCyte, and has been Chair of TekCyte since its formation in 2018. She also chairs the second spin-out from CTM CRC, Carina Biotech Pty Ltd. Dr Read was Chief Scientist for South Australia for a four-year term until 2019.

She is a current member of several private and public sector boards including Uniseed venture capital investment company, Biosensis Pty Ltd, RSPCA SA and the Federal Government Biomedical Translation Fund Committee. Dr Read has been elected to the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering and is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Dr Livesey has a career history spanning medicine, medical research and commercialisation. Dr Livesey co-founded LifeCell Corporation in the United States and served as its Executive Vice President and Chief Science Officer. LifeCell was founded through a technology transfer from the University of Texas stemming from Dr Livesey’s invention of a cell and tissue preservation technology. He has also been the Chief Scientific Officer and CEO of the Australian Stem Cell Centre and maintains an active research interest in matrix-based research at St Vincent’s Hospital, Melbourne.

Dr Alexander Gosling has been working in the field of process and product development for 40 years, and is founding director of Invetech, a global innovation and product realisation partner. Dr Gosling sits on a number of listed and unlisted medtech company Boards and was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for services to business through innovative support for research and development, and to the community. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Engineering, and was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Technology & Engineering and a Fellow of the Institute of Engineers Australia.

Professor Robert Short has a track record of research and commercialisation in the fields of thin film coatings, biomaterial science and life science tools research. Over a 25 year career in academia and industry, he has published more than 200 papers and is an inventor on 10 distinct patents that underpin globally sold products, including myskin™, a cell therapy used in the treatment of burns. Prof Short held the Chair of Material and Biomaterial Chemistry at the University of Sheffield from 2001, and in 2006 joined the University of South Australia where he held the positions of Director of a Research Institute, Dean of Research and Pro Vice Chancellor and Vice President. Prof Short is currently the Executive Director of the Material Science Institute at Lancaster University.

Dr Sameer Al-Bataineh is a Senior Materials Engineer at TekCyte with a strong background in surface engineering and characterisation of biomaterials. He joined TekCyte in 2020, after 14 years of international and national academic research experiences in applied biomaterials research. Dr Al-Bataineh received his PhD from the University of South Australia in 2006. His PhD was on the development of antimicrobial coatings for biomaterials utilised in biomedical applications. Dr Al-Bataineh has advanced expertise in surface coatings, plasma polymerisation processes (both vacuum and atmospheric), plasma diagnostics, scale-up of coating processes, surface characterisation and data analysis. He also has a wide experience in managing research projects.

Professor Claudine Bonder, PhD, heads the Vascular Biology and Cell Trafficking Laboratory at the Centre for Cancer Biology at UniSA and directs large animal studies for TekCyte. Her discoveries have led to the filing of six patents (two of which are directly related to TekCyte’s BIOINVISIBLE™.)

Professor Bonder provides TekCyte with expertise in a range of animal and in vitro models to assess the performance and development of BIOINVISIBLE™, as well as animal models to investigate new device applications for this technology.

Professor Hans Griesser, PhD, has a global-leading reputation for his research on biomaterials interfaces in both industry and academia. He is a key advisor to TekCyte on novel approaches to the modification and analysis of polymer surfaces, thin film deposition, biomaterials and bio-interfacial interactions. He was a key member of an international project team developing technologies and patents for extended wear contact lenses with Ciba Vision, which led to a large royalty stream to UNSW and CSIRO. Professor Griesser’s extensive experience in commercialising and scaling surface coating processes has been invaluable in the development of TekCyte’s coating.