Prof Robert Short

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 Tony Simula is Chief Technology Officer at TekCyte and brings more than 30 years’ experience spanning research and translation, technology development and commercialisation. He has spent much of his career at the interface of science, technology and commercialisation, and has held senior roles across public and private sector research organisations, including Cooperative Research Centres and publicly listed Australian and European companies. Prior to joining TekCyte, he was Manager, Development and Commercialisation at the CRC for Cell Therapy Manufacturing, where he oversaw the progression of technologies from proof-of-concept toward commercial application. Tony brings deep experience and a strong commitment to technology translation, commercialisation and strategic partnering, shaping TekCyte’s technology and commercial direction.

Dr Sue Low (Operations & Quality Lead) supports TekCyte’s operations, quality systems and research coordination, drawing on a strong background in biomaterials development. She completed her PhD in 2008 in dissolvable ocular biomaterials and subsequently worked in related fields focused on plasma surface modification to improve biomaterial compatibility. Sue also has experience in translating medical devices from bench to bedside ready, expanding small scale medical device manufacturing, as well as developing quality systems to ensure consistency across med device manufacture. Her experience across biomaterials, quality systems and medical device development supports TekCyte’s technology translation and commercialisation activities.

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.

Dr Sameer Al-Bataineh is Head of Surface Engineering at TekCyte and brings deep expertise in surface coatings and biomaterials characterisation. He joined the company in 2020 after 14 years of national and international academic research in applied biomaterials. He received his PhD in 2006 for research focused on antimicrobial coatings for biomedical applications. His technical background spans plasma polymerisation, plasma diagnostics, coating process development, surface characterisation and data analysis, supporting TekCyte’s technology development and commercialisation activities.

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.

Charlie is a Chartered Accountant with over 45 years’ experience in science, finance and compliance. Mr Latham has had over 20 years’ experience as Company Secretary and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of small ASX-listed entities and extensive experience as director, CFO and secretary of other companies. He has served on several audit and risk, due diligence and capital raising committees. Charlie is chair of Carina Biotech’s Audit and Risk Committee and has a Bachelor of Science (Hons) in zoology.

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.