I make your project flow, build bridges, empower you and your team to reach your goal like going with the stream.
🔷 Experience
Independent Veterinary Scientist and Translational Consultant
since 2025
Independent veterinarian providing scientific and translational expertise to pharma, biotech, and academic organizations in the development of biologically and medically meaningful therapies.
Core focus lies on the veterinary-medical interpretation of disease mechanisms, the evaluation of preclinical disease models, and the translation of experimental findings into clinically relevant development strategies.
Activities include:
Integration of regulatory and quality requirements into translational development concepts
Scientific advisory support on disease biology, immunopathology, and comparative medicine
Assessment and selection of preclinical in vivo and ex vivo models with relevance for human and animal disease
Interpretation of translational biomarkers, pharmacodynamic data, and biological efficacy signals
Support of interdisciplinary teams in medically complex decision-making environments
Affimed GmbH, Mannheim
Head of Translational Science and Clinical Biomarkers | 2020–2024
Veterinary-scientific leadership of translational immuno-oncology programs, focusing on the biological understanding of disease, model-to-clinic translation, and biomarker-driven therapeutic development.
Key responsibilities:
- Subject matter expert for translational disease biology, tumor immunology, and immune-mediated mechanisms of action
- Definition of translational hypotheses and experimental strategies linking preclinical animal models with early clinical development
- Scientific ownership of indication strategies and biological responder concepts across multiple drug candidates
- Design, implementation, and medical interpretation of biomarker strategies assessing pharmacodynamics, target engagement, and biological activity
- Scientific governance of external translational laboratories, pathology services, and diagnostic partners
- Integration of emerging biomedical evidence into ongoing and novel development programs
- Veterinary-medical risk assessment of translational assumptions and development decisions
- Active member of global project teams and internal scientific decision boards
- Budget responsibility (~€10M/year) and leadership of cross-functional translational teams
Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research (NIBR)
Global Project Team Leader | Immunology, Dermatology, Hepatology | 2006–2019
Veterinary-scientific responsibility for translational and preclinical research programs in immune-mediated, inflammatory, and metabolic diseases.
Selected activities:
- Leadership of preclinical and clinical research projects using experimental disease models (e.g., fibrosis, regenerative medicine, oncology, inflammatory skin disease)
- Scientific responsibility for study design, animal model selection, pathological readouts, and biological data interpretation
- Head of laboratory (immunology, epithelial biology, inflammation) ensuring biological quality, reproducibility, and regulatory compliance
- Clinical research rotation including pediatric studies (Phase 4) and infectious disease trials (Phase 2b malaria), strengthening clinical disease understanding
- Medical-scientific contribution to clinical protocols, Investigator’s Brochures (IBs), and Clinical Development Plans (CDPs)
- Training in translational quality systems (ICH, SOPs) and regulated biomedical research environments
Medical School Hannover
Postdoctoral Researcher & Ph.D. Candidate | 1999–2005
- Doctoral research in immunology: natural killer cell biology in transplantation and immune regulation
- Postdoctoral research in pulmonary immunology (asthma, immune tolerance, chemokine receptor biology)
- Funded by the DFG Collaborative Research Centre on immune reactions in the lung
🎓 Education & Training
- Veterinary Medicine (Staatsexamen), Free University Berlin
- Ph.D. in Immunology, Medical School Hannover
- Diploma in Pharmaceutical Medicine (ECPM), University of Basel
- Continuing professional development in translational science, leadership, regulatory science, translational medicine, and scientific communication