Management
Nikej Shah, M.D.
Chief Executive Officer
Dr. Shah is Founder/ CEO of Nirsum and Co-Inventor of its foundational intellectual property. He is also Co-Principal Investigator on Nirsum’s Cooperative Agreement with the National Institutes of Health (NIH)/ National Institute On Drug Abuse (NIDA). He brings over 25 years of experience in various roles as a physician-scientist, entrepreneur, and investor. Dr. Shah is also the Founder and Managing Partner of biotech-focused investment firm Mountain Brook Capital, the Founding Investor in Nirsum. He was previously a Senior Healthcare Portfolio Manager at Sigma Capital Management (now Point 72), and at HBK Capital Management. He was also a Managing Director at healthcare public/private equity investor Great Point Partners and Analyst at Ursus Capital. Dr. Shah earned an M.D. at the New York University School of Medicine and B.S. at Cornell University. He was a practicing emergency physician, having completed residency at the New York University/Bellevue Hospital Center, where he gained extensive experience with the acute treatment and referral of patients with opioid use disorder (OUD).
Bernard Silverman, M.D.
Chief Medical Officer
Dr. Silverman has over 20 years of experience in the biotechnology industry with a focus on clinical development. As Interim Chief Medical Officer for both Lyndra Therapeutics and Nocion Therapeutics he helped advance programs into clinic development. Prior, Dr. Silverman worked at Alkermes for nearly two decades, where he held several leadership roles in Clinical Development, Drug Safety and Medical Affairs. He played key roles in the development and approval of VIVITROL®, ARISTADA® and ARISTADA INITIO®. Prior to Alkermes, he was Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Northwestern University and Head of the Division of Pediatric Endocrinology at the Children’s Memorial Hospital and a member of the Institutional Review Board. Dr. Silverman received a B.A. in Biophysics from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.D. from Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Following pediatrics residency at the Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago, he completed postdoctoral training in Pediatric Endocrinology at the University of California San Francisco. He has served as a member of the American Board of Pediatrics and has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications.
Dan Deaver, Ph.D.
Chief Scientific Officer
Dr. Deaver is Chief Scientific Officer of Nirsum. His professional career spans over 35 years and includes extensive experience in academia and the biopharmaceutical industry. He is also Principal of Deaver Nonclinical Drug Development Consulting, LLC. He retired from Alkermes as Vice-President of Nonclinical R&D in 2016 after 17 years with the company. At Alkermes he provided leadership and scientific oversight for all biological aspects of nonclinical R&D. He was actively involved in the oversight of medicinal chemistry, pharmacology and toxicology efforts directed towards expanding Alkermes internal drug portfolio. He was directly involved with three programs that lead to marketed drugs – Vivitrol®, Bydureon® and Aristada®. Prior to Alkermes, Dr. Deaver was Professor, of Reproductive Physiology at Penn State University, and Chair of the Intercollege Graduate Program in Physiology. He has been awarded numerous U.S. patents, and has published extensively with over 125 papers, book chapters and abstracts. Dr. Deaver received his B.S. and M.S. degrees from University of Maryland College Park, and his Ph.D. degree from West Virginia University.
Mark Sorenson, Ph.D.
Chief Development Officer
Dr. Sorenson is Chief Development Officer of Nirsum. He brings over 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry to Nirsum. Dr. Sorenson has extensive experience consulting for pharmaceutical companies where he provides Chemistry, Manufacturing and Controls (CMC) leadership associated with the development of small molecule new chemical entities. His areas of expertise include analytical method development/validation and transfers, stability programs and data assessment, chemical process development, formulation and process development, API and drug product manufacturing and CMC regulatory document preparation. He previously held positions of increasing responsibility at Agouron Pharmaceuticals, Pfizer, and MGI Pharma. Dr. Sorenson earned his PhD in Pharmaceutics and BS in Pharmacy at the University of Minnesota.
Steve Davis, Ph.D.
Chief Patent Counsel
Dr. Davis is Chief Patent Counsel at Nirsum. He has over thirty years of experience as a practicing patent attorney, preparing and prosecuting patents in the field of organic chemistry and specializing in all aspects of pharmaceutical practice. He has spent most of his time as a patent attorney in private practice, most recently as a partner at the firm of McCarter & English, LLP. representing both start-ups and major pharmaceutical companies such as Boehringer Ingelheim, Biogen and Astellas. He was also an in-house patent attorney at Eli Lilly & Co. Prior to becoming a patent attorney, Dr. Davis was a research organic chemist in industry. He has a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Swarthmore College, a Masters degree and Ph.D. in organic chemistry from Johns Hopkins University and a J.D. from Case Western University.
Meredith Schiller
Vice President, Clinical Operations & Quality
Ms. Schiller has over 25 years of global drug development experience with a focus on clinical operations and quality management. She has expertise in the planning and execution of clinical studies, implementing the principles of quality by design, risk-based monitoring, and ensuring proper vendor oversight. Her experience spans all phases of the drug development life cycle. She has worked in multiple therapeutic areas, including neuroscience, oncology and rare diseases. She has worked at large, medium, and small companies including Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Sepracor, Collegium Pharmaceuticals, and Acceleron Pharmaceuticals. Ms. Schiller has also been Principal of Meredith Schiller Consulting for the past 7 years. She received her B.S. in Psychology from Stony Brook University.