Dr. Darlene LaBonte, MBA is a strategic pharmaceutical and biotechnology consultant with over 20 years of experience supporting clinical development programs from early-stage research through regulatory approval. A Yale-trained researcher and former Clinical Operations and Quality leader at Regeneron and Eli Lilly, she specializes in clinical trial execution, regulatory strategy, operational excellence, and compliance. As the Founder of Consults With Darlene, she advises both emerging and established biopharmaceutical organizations on Phase I–III clinical program oversight, FDA and EMA submissions, risk management, vendor optimization, and cross-functional leadership. Her expertise spans translational research, global clinical study management, and regulatory engagement, helping organizations accelerate development while maintaining high standards of quality and compliance. Recognized for her ability to streamline operations and align multidisciplinary teams, Darlene partners with clients across the United States and Europe to drive successful clinical and regulatory outcomes.

Mr. Fouad Akkad is a senior pharmaceutical commercial leader with 20 years of experience across international markets, specializing in commercial excellence, marketing, and product launch. At Pfizer, he chaired the cross-functional launch team for ABRYSVO ( RSV vaccine) which was a very successful launch. He now runs Pharma commercial, launch, marketing, and consulting practice helping pharma organizations apply AI to commercial and launch strategy, and writes the “Pharma AI Insider” newsletter. His work sits at the intersection of vaccine commercialisation, market access, and AI-driven decision-making.

Dr. Giorgio Giorgi is an Associate Professor at the Complutense University of Madrid, Spain, where he teaches Organic and Medicinal Chemistry at the School of Pharmacy. He holds a PhD in Organic Chemistry and Drug Synthesis from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid and a Master of Sciences in Pharmacy from the University of Rome “La Sapienza.” His research experience spans organic synthesis, drug design and synthesis, medicinal chemistry, chemical analysis, and clinical pharmacology, with more than 15 years of experience in basic and pharmaceutical research. His current research focuses on drug synthesis and design for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, including molecular docking and synthetic approaches. Dr. Giorgi has extensive experience in teaching, research supervision, academic project development, and conference planning, and has published research in international scientific journals.

Dr. Kapil Maithal is the President – Vaccines and Diagnostics at Zydus Lifesciences, India, with more than 25 years of experience in vaccine, biological, and diagnostic research, development, and manufacturing. He holds a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from University of Delhi and completed postdoctoral research in Structural Biology at Indian Institute of Science. Dr. Maithal has led the development of several innovative vaccines for human and veterinary use and played a key role in the development of ZyCoV-D®, the world’s first licensed human DNA vaccine against COVID-19. He has served on expert committees of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission, and Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC). A Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and Royal Society of Biology, he is also an accomplished inventor, author, and reviewer for leading scientific journals.

Dr. Ramesh Matur Co-Founded My RNA Biologics Pvt Ltd., Hyderabad in 2026. The company is focused on developing Vaccines for, infectious diseases, and cancer therapeutics on mRNA Platform. Prior to founding the Company, he established a strong competent research team and led the Preclinical & Clinical Development -Vaccines R&D Division (bacterial, viral, sub-unit, conjugate, VLPs, and mRNA based) from ideation, all the way to full clinical development at Biological E Ltd, Hyderabad, for over 12 years. Under his leadership, a novel Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine PCV14 PNEUBEVAX 14TM was approved and launched in 2023 in India. Year One sales exceeded US$120 Million. Prix Galien Foundation-India recognized PNEUBEVAX14 as the Best Biotechnology Product of 2025, India. Hepatitis A, Measles Rubella entered clinical trials. He provided Leadership in product manufacturing process development and Clinical Development functions. Prior to joining BioE, Dr. Matur led Industrial Biotechnology at DuPont Knowledge Centre, led Vaccines R&D Indian Immunologicals Ltd, and in Preclinical Development at Wyeth Pharma (now Pfizer), Pearl River, NY USA. He published 36 research papers, filed 20 patent applications with 10 globally granted patents. Dr. Matur has a Ph.D. in Biochemistry & M.Sc. in Microbiology, did postdoctoral research at Michigan State University and at The Ohio State University Biotechnology Centre, Columbus Ohio.

Dr. Sveta Mikhlin is a Developer and researcher of veterinary vaccines for poultry, Biovac, Israel. Participated in the development of live and inactivated vaccines against infectious bronchitis, low-pathogenic avian influenza (H9N2), salmonellosis, fowl cholera, infectious rhinotracheitis, fowl adenovirus hepatitis, and others. PhD in veterinary pharmacology and toxicology since 1989. Received the veterinary qualifications in 1977 from the Veterinary Academy in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Dr. Joao P.M. Carmo is a Biomedical Scientist who graduated from São Paulo State University (UNESP), Brazil. He holds a Master's degree in Pathology from the Botucatu Medical School (UNESP) and a PhD in Immunology from the University of São Paulo (USP). He currently serves as Professor of Pathology, Immunology, and Molecular Biology at the State University of Goiás (UEG), where he also coordinates the Itumbiara Unit. Dr. Carmo supervises undergraduate and postgraduate research in areas including microplastics, endocrine disruptors, and their impacts on human, animal, and environmental health within the One Health framework. His research interests also include vaccine development, tumor prevention, epidemiology, hemoglobinopathies, and post-COVID syndrome. He is actively involved in advancing interdisciplinary research and education in biomedical and health sciences.

Mr. Mohan Kodisana, Ph.D. candidate in Chemistry at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), where my research focuses on the design, synthesis, and photophysical characterization of cyanine-based fluorescent probes for applications in chemical biology and biomedical imaging. My research interests include near-infrared fluorophores, polymethine cyanine dyes, bioconjugation, and fluorescent probes for biological applications. In addition to my academic research, I have experience working on U.S. EPA-related analytical projects involving environmental sample analysis, quality control, and analytical data evaluation. My work combines organic synthesis, analytical chemistry, spectroscopy, and instrumental analysis to address challenges in chemical biology and environmental analysis. I have contributed to peer-reviewed publications and presented my research at scientific conferences. Through my interdisciplinary research and analytical experience, I aim to develop innovative approaches that contribute to biomedical and environmental research.

Mr. Othmane LAASER holds an MSc in Biology and Health, specializing in Immunity, Infection and Inflammation, and is currently a second-year PhD student at the Higher Institute of Health Sciences, Hassan First University, Settat, Morocco. His doctoral research focuses on the genomic and proteomic analysis of emerging and re-emerging viruses, with particular emphasis on antiviral research. His research interests include immunology, virology, immunoinformatics, reverse vaccinology, structural bioinformatics, and the application of artificial intelligence to biomedical research. His work aims to integrate computational and experimental approaches to investigate viral biology, host–pathogen interactions, and the discovery of innovative strategies for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of emerging infectious diseases.

Dr. Shivai Gupta is an AI Regulatory Specialist at Weave Bio, where she integrates artificial intelligence with regulatory science to advance compliant, data-driven drug development. She earned her Ph.D. in Medical Science with a specialization in Immunology from the University of Florida College of Medicine and holds an M.S. in Biotechnology from Georgetown University. Her research has focused on autoimmune diseases, vaccine development, and viral immunology, including work on MHC Class II inhibition, influenza and RSV vaccines, HIV regulatory protocols, and Zika virus characterization. Dr. Gupta has also supported global biopharmaceutical organizations through scientific consulting in biologics and bioprocess informatics. She has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications, presented at more than 40 national and international scientific conferences, and serves as a reviewer for immunology journals. She is an active member of several professional organizations, including the American Association of Immunologists, Women in Bio–Boston, and the Healthcare Businesswomen's Association.

Dr. Houria BENARRADJ is a PhD in Molecular and Cellular Immunology and Laureate of the France Excellence IFA_Doctorat Haute Technologie scholarship. She is pursuing a joint doctoral degree between the University of Tlemcen, Algeria, and the University of Montpellier, France. She conducts her research ant th BIOMOLIM laboratory in Tlemcen and at the PCCEI research Unit (INSERM UMR 1058) in Montpellier., where she focuses on human adenovirus-based vaccine development, with particular interest in pre-existing immunity against adenoviruses as well as rational multi-epitope vaccine design. Her research combines computational techniques for recognizing the viral epitope and adjusting its properties to experimental methods for defining vaccine candidates. Part of her research in France involved evaluating the immune complexes including their interaction with immune cells as well as their phagocytosis and functional reactions using flow cytometry. Her research interests include viral immunology, vaccine design, antigen engineering, and cellular mechanisms of immune complexes.

Dr. Florencia Del Río Álvarez is a veterinarian from Corrientes, Argentina, with expertise in veterinary medicine, immunology, and vaccine development. She completed her PhD research under a CONICET scholarship, focusing on bovine babesiosis, where she contributed to the development of a novel vaccine formulation combining safety, efficacy, and practical application. During her academic career, she served as an ad honorem professor in Pharmacology and Toxicology, supervised undergraduate research projects, and participated in clinical trials of antiparasitic treatments and regulatory documentation for SENASA approval. Currently based in Turin, Italy, Dr. Del Río Álvarez is seeking opportunities to reconnect with the academic and scientific community and continue contributing to research in vaccine development, veterinary medicine, and translational science.

Dr. Tintu Varghese (MD,PhD) is a physician-scientist specializing in enteric infections, vaccine effectiveness, and vaccine responses in children, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Her research has advanced understanding of rotavirus epidemiology and evaluated the impact of India’s indigenous rotavirus vaccines, Rotavac and Rotasiil, through large-scale surveillance studies conducted across the country. She also leads the WHO South-East Asia Regional Office (SEARO) Rotavirus Regional Reference Laboratory and Global Pediatric Diarrheal Surveillance activities at Christian Medical College, Vellore, contributing to laboratory strengthening, molecular surveillance, quality assurance, and technical capacity building across the WHO South-East Asia Region.

Dr. Neda Mohsen-Pour, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor at the Zanjan Pharmaceutical Biotechnology Research Center, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Iran. She received her Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine from Zanjan University of Medical Sciences. Her research interests focus on bioinformatics, cancer genetics, vaccinology, genomics, and translational immunology. Her research experience includes in silico vaccine design, whole-exome sequencing, identification of disease-associated genetic variants, cancer-related molecular studies, cell culture, and recombinant protein production. Her current research focuses on applying computational and molecular approaches to the development of novel vaccine candidates and the investigation of molecular mechanisms underlying human diseases. She is particularly interested in cancer vaccines, immunoinformatics, mRNA vaccine development, and precision medicine.

Ms. Elizabeth Wamoni Kimani is a Quality Control Scientist at KEVEVAPI with expertise in biotechnology, molecular biology, and microbiology. Her work focuses on veterinary vaccine quality control, microbial testing, biosafety, and laboratory quality management. She has experience in vaccine production, pathogen detection, molecular diagnostics, and research, with a strong interest in microbial genomics, conservation genomics, and One Health approaches to animal health. Elizabeth is committed to advancing genomics applications in disease surveillance, vaccine development, and biodiversity conservation while promoting collaborative research and capacity building to strengthen veterinary and public health systems across Africa.

Dr. Shereen Shaban Abdelkareem is a pharmacist and researcher specializing in Medical Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Biology. She is currently pursuing a Master of Science in Microbiology and Immunology at the Faculty of Pharmacy, Ain Shams University, Egypt. Her research focuses on the molecular characterization of multidrug-resistant (MDR) Proteus mirabilis clinical isolates, with an emphasis on antimicrobial resistance mechanisms, molecular diagnostics, bacterial genomics, and antimicrobial susceptibility testing. In addition to her academic research, she serves as a Microbiological Pharmacist at Eltal Elkabeer Central Hospital, where she is involved in bacterial isolation and identification, laboratory diagnosis of infectious diseases, and antimicrobial susceptibility testing. She has gained valuable international research experience through training programs at Hannover Medical School (Germany), Academia Sinica (Taiwan), and the ESCMID Summer School in Ireland. Her primary research interests include antimicrobial resistance (AMR), molecular diagnostics, and clinical microbiology.