Leadership
Executive Leadership
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, BIORCHESTRA Co., Ltd. and BIORCHESTRA US Inc.
Branden Ryu is the Founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Chairman of BIORCHESTRA. Branden earned his doctorate degree from the Graduate School of Medicine at the University of Tokyo. He also completed an internship at the Harvard-MIT Health Science and Technology, the Massachusetts General Hospital, and conducted further research at the Harvard Medical School.
In 2016, Dr. Ryu founded BIORCHESTRA, to focus on the development of RNA-based therapeutics. He discovered novel RNA biomarkers and invented a novel ASO modality to treat multiple neurodegenerative diseases. Under his leadership, BIORCHESTRA expanded the preclinical development of novel RNA modalities into further neurological, cancer, chronic as well as rare diseases and has filed more than 100 patent applications since 2017.
Chief Medical Officer, BIORCHESTRA Co., Ltd.
President, BIORCHESTRA US Inc.
Gabriel Helmlinger, Ph.D., DABT
Vice-President and Head, Translational & Clinical Pharmacology, BIORCHESTRA Co., Ltd. and BIORCHESTRA US Inc.
Dr. Helmlinger brings 25 years of extensive expertise in the nonclinical, translational and clinical assessment of novel therapeutic candidates and in the focused areas of pharmacology, biomarker identification, drug delivery systems, study design, and diagnostics, over a wide range of disease domains and therapeutic modalities. He has also contributed to multiple regulatory submissions and agency interactions. Dr. Helmlinger has additional broad experience in the translational pharmacology of small molecules, peptides, antibodies and antibody-based constructs, gene and cell therapies, as well as various molecular and micromechanical delivery systems.
Prior to joining BIORCHESTRA, Dr. Helmlinger managed organizations and programs of drug development, translational & clinical pharmacology, toxicology, biomarkers, and quantitative data analytics at Procter & Gamble, Novartis, AstraZeneca, and Obsidian Therapeutics, a gene & cell therapy biotech. Dr. Helmlinger holds Ph.D. and MSc. degrees in bioengineering and mechanical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology (Atlanta, USA) and an MSc. degree in biomedical engineering from the Université de Technologie (Compiègne, France). He completed his postdoctoral training in Tumor Biology and Radiation Oncology at Harvard Medical School, the Massachusetts General Hospital, and is a Diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology (D.A.B.T.) since 2000. He has published 50+ articles in peer-reviewed journals.
David Oxley
Chief Business Officer and Head of Global Business Development, BIORCHESTRA Co., Ltd. and BIORCHESTRA US Inc.
Mr. David Oxley has been appointed as Chief Business Officer of BIORCHESTRA. Mr. Oxley leads corporate strategy, including global commercial partnerships and capital markets outside Korea. Mr. Oxley has extensive experience developing corporate strategy, managing asset license arrangements, and global capital markets. With a unique combination of experience in next-generation genetic and cellular medicine, Mr. Oxley’s credentials include designing and prosecuting complex business plans for Hong Kong Listing in China and the Asia Pacific, commercializing first-in-category products, and leading complex cross-border licensing transactions. In addition, Mr. Oxley brings experience building high-performing global sales and marketing organizations to support the company’s strategic plan. Beyond his corporate experience, Mr. Oxley has served on the boards of a privately held antibody-based medical device company, a not-for-profit foundation focused on infectious diseases in Africa, and as a member of the private sector delegation to the Global Fund to fight infectious diseases in Africa. Mr. Oxley completed his bachelor’s studies at Portland State University and his master’s in government and public health at Johns Hopkins University in the U.S.
Mi Jung Lim, Ph.D.
Chief Development Officer and the Head of R&D, BIORCHESTRA Co., Ltd.
Mi Jung Lim has more than 16 years of experience in management, program design and execution, and operations, acting as a pharmaceutical drug research and development specialist across all R&D functions, including: CMC; Pharmacology; Translational Research (MoA characterization, PK/PD; toxicology; IND applications with both the US FDA and the Korean FDA. Dr. Lim also has in-depth expertise in CNS research, neurodegenerative diseases, and oncology. She gained cross-functional leadership experience in multi-disciplinary and culturally diverse organizations including academia, industry, governmental institutions as well as CROs, demonstrating effective leadership and collaboration to execute on complex programs and in a timely manner. She also has extensive bench experience in drug discovery, in areas such as small molecules, diagnostics based on MRI contrast agents, polymers, and nutritional food development.
Ilsang Yoon, Ph.D.
Chief Alliance Officer, BIORCHESTRA Co., Ltd.
Il Sang Yoon, Ph.D. is appointed as a chief alliance officer in BIORCHESTRA as of September 2022. Dr. Yoon earned his M.Sc. and Ph.D. degree at University of Toronto in the field of molecular genomics of bipolar disorder and received post-doctoral training in the field of cellular biology of Alzheimer’s disease at University of California, San Diego. He has 20-plus years of academic and industry experience with increasing responsibility in the USA. He has completed a wide range of industry projects such as small molecule drug discovery and immuno-assay product development. His former employers include CytRx, EMD Millipore (a.k.a. Merck Millipore), and Nexus-Dx (Sphingotec company). Dr. Yoon also served as a senior manager such as the managing director/site head at SD Medicalsystem Inc (La Jolla, CA) and the senior VP & head of the R&D center at PharmCADD (Busan, Korea).
YoungGil “YG” Kim is BIORCHESTRA’s Chief Financial Officer.
He leads finance, investors’ relations, accounting, and operations functions. He is also a member of BIORCHESTRA’s Board of Directors.
Prior to joining BIORCHESTRA, YG Kim was with KPMG for 13 years, where he acted as a certified public accountant, with expertise in M&A, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and IFRS conversion. He also served as CFO at GenoFocus for 7 years.
Board of Directors
Branden Ryu, Ph.D.
Chairman, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, BIORCHESTRA Co., Ltd. and BIORCHESTRA US Inc.
Branden Ryu is the Founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Chairman of BIORCHESTRA. Branden earned his doctorate degree from the Graduate School of Medicine at the University of Tokyo. He also completed an internship at the Harvard-MIT Health Science and Technology, the Massachusetts General Hospital, and conducted further research at the Harvard Medical School.
In 2016, Dr. Ryu founded BIORCHESTRA, to focus on the development of RNA-based therapeutics. He discovered novel RNA biomarkers and invented a novel ASO modality to treat multiple neurodegenerative diseases. Under his leadership, BIORCHESTRA expanded the preclinical development of novel RNA modalities into further neurological, cancer, chronic as well as rare diseases and has filed more than 100 patent applications since 2017.
Louis St. L. O’Dea MB, BCH, BAO, CSPQ, FRCP(C)
Chief Medical Officer, BIORCHESTRA Co., Ltd.
President, BIORCHESTRA US Inc.
Dr. Louis O’Dea is appointed as BIORCHESTRA’s Chief Medical Officer as of September 2021. He is a President of BIORCHESTRA’s US Corporate and a member of BIORCHESTRA’s board of directors. Dr. O’Dea is a board-certified physician and 28-year industry professional with a track record of successful global drug development and regulatory approvals. Dr. O’Dea has led 14 clinical NDAs, 4 orphans and 1 device approval and is experienced with proteins, peptides, small molecules and nucleotides, as well as with a broad range of devices and routes of administration. Dr. O’Dea joined Akcea as Chief Medical Officer in January 2016. Prior to joining Akcea, Dr. O’Dea was Chief Medical Officer at Oxford Imunotec, overseeing Medical Affairs and Clinical Development. Prior to Oxford, Dr. O’Dea was Chief Medical Officer and Head of Regulatory Affairs at Moderna Therapeutics, a biotech company focused on developing messenger RNA-based therapeutics. Before Moderna, Dr. O’Dea was Chief Medical Officer at Radius Health, where he brought forward a number of molecules through clinical development, including Abaloparatide.
YoungGil Kim, CPA
Chief Financial Officer, BIORCHESTRA Co., Ltd.
YoungGil “YG” Kim is BIORCHESTRA’s Chief Financial Officer.
He leads finance, investors’ relations, accounting, and operations functions. He is also a member of BIORCHESTRA’s Board of Directors.
Prior to joining BIORCHESTRA, YG Kim was with KPMG for 13 years, where he acted as a certified public accountant, with expertise in M&A, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and IFRS conversion. He also served as CFO at GenoFocus for 7 years.
External Director, BIORCHESTRA Co., Ltd.
Chief Executive Officer of Daily Partners
Seoul National University BSc/MSc/PhD in Pharmacy
Korea University Executive MBA
Korea University PhD in Management of Technology
Seoul National University Bio-CEO Program
Experience
Dong-A Pharm RD Senior Researcher
LIG Investment Research Center Bio-Pharma Analyst
HI Investment Research Center Bio-Pharma Analyst
NH Investment (Formerly Woori) Bio-Pharma Analyst
Samsung Securities Research Center Bio-Pharma TF Manager
Internal Audit, BIORCHESTRA Co., Ltd.
Education
MBA, University of Washington
Experience
Executive Director, Korea Exchange
Executive Vice President, KCGS(Korea Corporate Governance Service)