Our Team
Penrose is an organization comprised of highly motivated multi-disciplinary individuals, brought together by a shared commitment towards alleviating human suffering. We believe that our highly skilled and diverse set of dedicated individuals, united under a common mission, can help resolve some of our healthcare system’s challenges that have long been considered impossible.
Penrose management includes biotech and healthcare professionals with deep scientific, clinical and operational expertise.
Leadership Team
James J. Jaber M.D., Ph.D
Founder & Chief Scientific Officer
James J. Jaber M.D., Ph.D
Founder & Chief Scientific Officer
James graduated from the University of California, Davis with a B.S. in Biochemistry and a B.A. in Religious Studies in 1994. Following graduation, he then went to work at Geron Corp., Menlo Park, CA conducting medicinal chemistry research towards designing and synthesizing novel anti-telomerase inhibitors (anticancer). It was during this time that he decided he would dedicate the rest of his career as a physician-scientist towards treating cancer patients while simultaneously pursuing novel anti-cancer drugs.
In pursuit of his goal, Dr. Jaber then went on to earn his Ph.D. from the University of California, Irvine in Organic Chemistry in 2002 under the mentorship of Prof. Scott Rychnovsky. Following the completion of his Ph.D., he continued towards his goal by obtaining an M.D. from Albany Medical College, Albany, NY in 2006. Dr. Jaber then completed a residency in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at Loyola University Medical Hospital, Maywood IL in 2011. Upon completing his residency, he entered into a 2-year Advanced Head & Neck Oncologic Surgery Fellowship at the U. Pittsburgh Medical Center and postdoctoral medicinal chemistry fellowship under the mentorship of Prof. Peter Wipf synthesizing STAT3 inhibitors for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.
In 2013, Dr. Jaber returned to Loyola University Medical Center (LUMC) as an attending in the division of advanced head and neck surgical oncology and became an assistant professor in the Department of Otolaryngology from 2013-2015. He was also an assistant professor and performed surgeries at the Veterans Affairs Hospital, Edward Hines Jr, Hines, IL from 2013-2015. During this time he laid the groundwork for a translational research laboratory at LUMC, as well. In 2016, Dr. Jaber left Loyola University Medical Center and founded Penrose TherapeuTx with Mr. Umrai Gill.
Mark de Souza
Chief Executive Officer & Member, Board of Directors
Mark de Souza
Chief Executive Officer & Member, Board of Directors
Mark de Souza brings decades of experience in business to Penrose TherapeuTx, specifically in business development, finance, and corporate management. Mr. de Souza recently led Revolution Global, a leading multi-state cannabis health and wellness company based in Chicago, as CEO since 2016.
As a member of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange since 1992, he has leveraged his expertise in valuation and risk pricing to help companies reach their full commercial potential. He also served on several CME internal governing committees, including the Broker Association Committee, the Business Conduct (Financial Division) Committee, and the Eurodollar Configuration Advisory Committee. In addition, de Souza was a member of the CME Political Action Committee, participating in the Congressional lobbying efforts on legislative and regulatory issues affecting the Futures industry.
Mr. de Souza also served as President of County Cork, LLC, a family office-owned investment company specializing in all senior management issues relating to asset allocation, risk analysis, and business development through 2015. Mr. de Souza also served in the same roles for a European family office whose primary exposure was the energy sector, and for a prominent U.S. family in the entertainment industry. Serving as the Chief Investment Officer for the family’s investment vehicle, he assisted in analysis and acquisition on U.S.-based hard asset and cash flowing opportunities.
Mr. de Souza also served as a Principal (Series 3, 7, 24, 62, 63, 65 licenses) of Spike Financial Services, a NASD Broker Dealer that was a leading provider of services in the trading and derivatives arena. As a founding partner and past COO of Titan Holdings, LLC he created opportunities for hedge funds, institutional investors, and high-volume professional trading groups to access services including clearing and execution, custodial services, capital introduction, leverage and consulting expertise.
Mr. de Souza is widely regarded for his philanthropic contributions, providing his time and expertise to charity organizations throughout his hometown of Chicago. Through his more than 25 years of charitable service, Mr. de Souza has assisted with fundraising efforts for Northwestern University, the University of Chicago, the Lynn Sage Foundation, and the Gastro-Intestinal Research Foundation. Mr. de Souza joined Penrose TherapeuTx in 2020.
Bennett C. Borer, Ph.D
Director of CMC
Bennett C. Borer, Ph.D
Director of CMC
Ben graduated from Bowling Green State University in 1985 with a B.S. in Chemistry and started his career in the pharmaceutical industry at Eli Lilly in Indianapolis in the Process Research group. In 1989, looking to expand his chemistry knowledge and horizons, Ben moved to England to start graduate school in Organic Chemistry at the University of East Anglia with Prof. Richard J. K. Taylor. A postdoctoral position at the University of Amsterdam followed and Ben moved back to the United States in 1994.
Ben resumed his career in pharmaceutical process research at Agouron Pharmaceuticals in San Diego, working on the HIV-protease inhibitor Viracept, through Phase 3 and commercial launch. Ben took on increasing responsibilities through the merger with Warner Lambert and Pfizer and worked on a number of IND-stage anti-viral, oncology, and ophthalmology candidates as Director of Process Research. Following the closure of Pfizer’s Pharmaceutical Sciences group in San Diego (2006), Ben worked with two start-ups (BioVerdant and Strategic Enzyme Applications), developing enzymatic approaches to pharmaceutical and fine chemical intermediates. In 2011, Ben joined Trius Therapeutics and led the drug substance effort on Sivextro, an oxizolidinone antibiotic. This led to the successful validation, NDA, and launch of Sivextro. Following the acquisition of Trius, Ben continued his career consulting for smaller companies in the areas of drug substance and CMC. This led to a number of IND and an NDA filings in oncology and neurology. Ben joined the Penrose TherapeuTx team in 2016.
Christopher W. Schutt
Chief Financial Officer
Christopher W. Schutt
Chief Financial Officer
Chris Schutt graduated from Cornell University with a B.S. in Applied Economics & Business Management. In 2003, after earning All-Ivy League 1st team and Ivy League Pitcher of the Year, Chris was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 7th round of the MLB draft with the 208th overall pick. He left Cornell after his junior year to pursue his childhood dream of pitching in the Major Leagues. After making it to Double-A, Chris was offered a role on the business side of baseball as an agent in 2008. He took over as the operations director for RMG Sports Management, a boutique sports agency firm based out of Chicago. Chris was responsible for all non-contract related operations and brought stability to a firm that previously saw its top 3 agents abruptly leave the company. In 2009, he took an offer to join Performance Trust Capital Partners, an independently held full-service Investment Bank & Broker-Dealer advising the financial services industry. Chris advises private & public depository institutions ranging from $250 million in assets to $25 billion in assets. Depositories leverage his expertise in Balance Sheet Optimization & Restructuring, Equity Capital Markets, Mergers & Acquisitions, Finance & Treasury Operations, Loan Syndication & Securitization, & Enterprise Risk Management. He is Series 7, Series 63, and National Futures Association licensed. Chris is a founding member of Penrose TherapeuTx and Chief Financial Officer where he is responsible for Finance & Accounting, Business Operations, Corporate Development, and Investor Relations. Chris was born and raised in Chicago, IL where he currently resides with his wife Jillian.
Jasrai S. Gill, M.D., M.B.A.
Chief Medical Officer (Interim)
Jasrai S. Gill, M.D., M.B.A.
Chief Medical Officer (Interim)
Jasrai S. Gill, MD, MBA, is a Cardio-Oncologist and Vascular Specialist at Shore Heart Group, PA, in Neptune, NJ. He is the Medical Director of Endovascular Medicine at Community Medical Center in Toms River, NJ. Additionally, Dr. Gill is Medical Director of the Cardio-Oncology Program at Southern Ocean Medical Center in Manahawkin, NJ. Dr. Gill has published and participated in clinical trials within the fields of interventional cardiology and vascular therapy. His academic interest in the field of Cardio – Oncology has stemmed from the high co-incidence of both disease states in a large and increasing geriatric population present in Ocean County, NJ. Academic interests also include: cost effectiveness and economic viability of new pharmacologic and medical device therapies, value-based healthcare, and population health management.
Dr. Gill serves as an Executive Clinical Director to Penrose TherapeuTx. He received his MD from Albany Medical College, completed a residency in Internal Medicine at Yale – New Haven Hospital, and fellowships in Cardiology and Interventional Cardiology at Loyola University Medical Center. He also holds an MBA from the Lally School of Management at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and a BS in Biology from RPI as part of a BS/MD Physician – Scientist Program.
Chemical Biology Team
Luke Peterson, Ph.D
Director
Luke Peterson, Ph.D
Director
**Coming Soon**
Miao-Chia Lo, Ph.D
Director
Miao-Chia Lo, Ph.D
Director
Dr. Miao-Chia Lo received her B.S. degree in Biology from National Cheng-Kung University in Taiwan in 1994 and her M.S. degree in Anatomy and Cell Biology from National Taiwan University in Taiwan in 1996. In 2000, she came to U.S. to pursue a career in biological research and earned her Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences from University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas in 2005.
During her Ph.D. study, Dr. Lo discovered novel regulatory mechanisms in Wnt/MAPK signaling in Caenorhabditis elegans. After completing her Ph.D. she continued postdoctoral work at the Scripps Research Institute and the University of California San Diego as a Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Postdoctoral Fellow studying the molecular mechanisms of leukemia development involving the translocation of chromosomes 8 and 21. She was the first to discover downregulation of CD45 in t(8;21) leukemia cells, show that CD45 downregulation leads to enhanced JAK/STAT signaling in t(8;21) leukemia cells and demonstrate the therapeutic potential of JAK inhibitors in treating t(8;21) leukemia.
In 2014, Dr. Lo moved to University of Michigan as an Assistant Research Scientist in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy. She studied the role of Retinoblastoma binding proteins 4 and 7 in triple-negative breast cancer and identified several potential therapeutic targets for the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer. In 2018, Dr. Lo left University of Michigan to join Penrose TherapeuTx.
Scientific Advisors
Prof. David L. Van Vranken, Ph.D
University of California, Irvine
Prof. David L. Van Vranken, Ph.D
University of California, Irvine
Dr. Van Vranken earned his Ph.D. in Chemistry from Stanford University in 1991 as an NSF predoctoral fellow developing new ligands for asymmetric catalysis and applying them to the synthesis of natural product glycosidase inhibitors. After completing his Ph.D. he carried out postdoctoral work at UC Berkeley as an NSF Postdoctoral Fellow developing antibody-catalyzed reactions for conjugate addition and carbamate hydrolysis. Dr. Van Vranken began his independent career in the Department of Chemistry at the University of California at Irvine in 1994 developing carbon-carbon bond forming reactions of peptides. His research has spanned natural product synthesis, new transition metal catalyzed reactions, and synthesis of bioactive compounds. He has been a Camille and Henry Dreyfus New Faculty Awardee, a Glaxo-Wellcome Chemistry Scholar, an Eli Lilly Faculty Grantee, a Fellow of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and a recipient of the Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award. Dr. Van Vranken is currently a Professor of Chemistry at UCI.
Prof. Paul J. Feustel, M.Engr., Ph.D
Albany Medical College
Prof. Paul J. Feustel, M.Engr., Ph.D
Albany Medical College
Paul J. Feustel received his B.S. and M.Engr. in Biomedical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He went on to receive his Ph.D in Human Physiology from Albany Medical College, where he now serves as Director of Research Administration of Basic Science as well as a Professor for the Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics.
Prof. Patrick J. Farmer, Ph.D
Baylor University
Prof. Patrick J. Farmer, Ph.D
Baylor University
Dr. Farmer received his B.S. degree in Chemistry from UTSA in 1988, a Ph.D. in Chemistry from TAMU in 1993, and won two nationally competitive postdoctoral fellowships, an NSF-NATO fellowship in 1993 at Ecole NormaleSupérieure, Paris and an NSF Fellowship at Caltech in 1994. He started his academic career at UC Irvine in 1995, receiving tenure in 2001, and full professor rank in 2005. He moved to Baylor as Professor and Chair of Chemistry & Biochemistry in 2009.
Clinical Advisors
James A. Stankiewicz, M.D.
Loyola University Medical Center
James A. Stankiewicz, M.D.
Loyola University Medical Center
Dr. James Stankiewicz has been with Loyola University Medical Center since 1980. He recently held the position as Chairman of the Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery (ENT) for 10 years before stepping down July 1, 2015. Dr. Stankiewicz will remain an active member of the department as Professor, and retain his position as the director and founder of the Nasal Sinus Center at Loyola. His clinical activities include diagnosis, medical and surgical treatment of nasal sinus disorders. Dr. Stankiewicz graduated from the University of Chicago with a degree in biology and earned his medical degree from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine (1974). His residency in otolaryngology was served at the University of Chicago Hospitals and Clinics (1974-1978). Dr. Stankiewicz served a two-year military obligation in Oakland, CA, where he was on the faculty of the University of California, San Francisco. In 1985, he started the Nasal Sinus Center at Loyola, the first in the area. He has performed more than 15,000 nasal or sinus procedures and is nationally and internationally recognized for his experience and expertise particularly in the area of complications of endoscopic sinus surgery. He is the author of more than 300 articles, chapters, and books. He has delivered more than 500 presentations, mostly dealing with nasal and sinus disorders. Dr. Stankiewicz is certified in Otolaryngology by the American Board of Otolaryngology. Dr. Stankiewicz was elected to and served on the American Academy Board of Directors. He was also president of the American Rhinological Society (ARS). Dr. Stankiewicz joined Penrose TherapeuTx in 2016.
Salah K. Baydoun, M.D.
Emergency Medicine and Critical Care
Salah K. Baydoun, M.D.
Emergency Medicine and Critical Care
Dr. Salah Baydoun completed his undergraduate education from the University of California Berkeley in 1998. After graduating, he went on to serve as an AmeriCorp VISTA (Domestic PeaceCorps) within the underserved medical communities of Northern California. Salah earned his MD in 2002 from Albany Medical College. He went on to complete a residency in Emergency Medicine from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in 2006. Since Graduating, Salah has been practicing Emergency Medicine and Critical Care in the Las Vegas community where he also served as the Chairman of the Emergency Department for several years. In addition to practicing clinical medicine, Dr. Baydoun has an ongoing vested interest in healthcare delivery to the underserved, particularly within international communities.
Kevin C. Welch, M.D.
Northwestern Memorial Hospital
Kevin C. Welch, M.D.
Northwestern Memorial Hospital
Kevin is a fellowship trained rhinologist and anterior skull base surgeon who specializes in the medical and surgical management of chronic rhinosinusitis as well as paranasal sinus and anterior skull base tumors. Chronic rhinosinusitis is a condition that affects millions of Americans and results in a tremendous health care burden. Many treatments have been proposed, but few have stood the test of time. Kevin has been working with colleagues and experts in the field over the past 7 years to investigate topical therapeutic agents that may help control the local inflammatory reaction, which represents a breakdown between the patient’s innate & adaptive immunity and mucosal barrier and its interface with the environment. Through patient interaction and medication/surgery selection, he hopes to identify patients with refractory chronic rhinosinusitis who would benefit from alternative therapies that can be applied topically to combat superantigens, biofilms and osteitis.