Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board. Dr.
Horwitz received his MD and PhD (Biochemistry) from
Indiana University in 1988. He then completed
clinical training in Pediatrics and Pediatric
Hematology Oncology as well as his laboratory
postdoctoral training at Washington University in
St. Louis. He served on the faculty at Washington
University for one year before being recruited to
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis,
Tennessee. Dr. Horwitz currently serves as the
Director of Cell Therapy in the Division of Oncology
/ Blood & Marrow Transplantation at Children’s Hospital of
Philadelphia.
Having published over 75 papers on
stem cell transplantation and stem cell biology, Dr.
Horwitz is an internationally recognized authority
on mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs). He reported the
first clinical bone marrow transplant for children
with severe osteogenesis imperfecta, a genetic
disorder of the mesenchymal-derived bone cells. He
was also the first investigator to infuse allogeneic
MSCs into patients. Dr. Horwitz’s current research
is focused on furthering our knowledge of the MSC
biology as well as advancing MSC therapy for
hematologic and non-hematologic disorders. Dr.
Horwitz is a member of the honorific American
Society for Clinical Investigation and is
President-Elect of the International Society for
Cellular Therapy.
Dr. Annex received his medical degree from the Yale
University School of Medicine and completed his
residency in internal medicine at Tuft's-New England
Medical Center in Boston. He went on to complete a
fellowship in cardiology at Duke University Medical
Center and an interventional cardiology fellowship
at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, MI. Upon
completion of his fellowships Dr. Annex joined the
faculty at Duke University.
Dr. Annex has recently been appointed Chief of the Division of Cardiovascular
Medicine, Department of Medicine at the University of Virginia School of
Medicine. Dr. Annex previously served as a Professor of Medicine in the Division
of Cardiovascular Medicine at the Duke University School of Medicine. In
addition, Dr. Annex served as Vice-Chief of the Division of Cardiovascular
Medicine, Director of Vascular Medicine, and staff cardiologist at the Durham
Veterans Administration Medical Center.
Dr. Annex's clinical and research interests include a multidisciplinary program
in angiogenesis (the growth of new blood vessels) that is focused mainly on
peripheral artery disease (PAD), where blockages in arteries cause a series of
clinical problems. His group is involved in a series of bench to bedside studies,
which include a number of investigations on the causes of the blockages in
arteries outside the heart. Included among the studies are gene or cell therapy
clinical investigations to promote blood vessel growth in patients with PAD, as
well as studies of exercise training, and pre-clinical models of PAD.
Dr. Annex serves as a member of the NIH Study Section on Clinical and
Integrative Cardiovascular Sciences and has served as a regular reviewer for the
journals Circulation, Circulation Research, the American Journal of Cardiology,
the American Journal of Physiology, and the New England Journal of Medicine.
Prof. Arnon Nagler
Prof. Nagler received his M.D. certification from
the Hebrew University in 1977 and has received his
certification in Internal Medicine from the Israel
Board of Internal Medicine. He received his MSc.
certification in Cell Biology from the Tel Aviv
University in 1985 and his Hematology certification
from the Israel Board of Hematology in 1986.
Prof. Nagler completed a residency at the Hadassah
University Hospital between 1977-1978. Prof. Nagler
studied Internal Medicine and Hematology at the
Rambam Medical Center in Haifa between 1980-1984 and
1984-1986, respectively. Between 1984-85 he was
active in the Histology and Cell Biology Department
at the Tel Aviv University Sackler School of
Medicine and between 1985-86 at the Hematopoiesis
Research Laboratory, at the Rambam Medical Center.
Between 1986-90 he was a Research Associate in the
Stanford Medical Center Hematology Department. In
1991 he was a Visiting Scientist at the DNAX
Research Institute, Palo Alto, Ca. Between 1995-98
he was the Head of the Israel National Human
Umbilical Cord Blood Bank, at the Hadassah Medical
Center. From 1990 to 2000 he held the position of
Senior Physician in the Hadassah Medical Center’s
Department of Bone Marrow Transplantation. In 2000
Prof. Nagler was appointed Director of the Chaim
Sheba Medical Center Bone Marrow Transplantation
Department and Cord Blood Bank, and in 2003 the
Director of the Hematology Institute.
Prof. Nagler is a Professor of Medicine at Tel Aviv
University Sackler School of Medicine. Among other
awards he has received, in 1994 Prof. Nagler was
awarded the Naftali Award for Research. Prof. Nagler
is the author of numerous scientific articles, has
been published in peer-reviewed journals, and has
written chapters in medical books.
His major research interests are: Cord Blood
Biology, Adoptive Cell Mediated Immunotherapy, NK
and CTL Activity, Transplantation in
Hemato-Oncologic Malignancies, Fibrotic Disorders
and the role of Collagen Type I.
He is a member of: the American Society of
Hematology, The International Bone Marrow Transplant
Registry, the International Cord Blood, the American
Association of Blood Banking, the ISCT and other
organization
Jacob Michael Rowe, MD, F.A.C.P.
Dr. Rowe received his undergraduate and medical
degrees from University College and University
College Hospital in London. He completed his
internship in London and did a fellowship in
hematology/oncology at the University of Rochester,
NY. Between 1981 and 1996 Dr. Rowe was Director of
Clinical Services of the Hematology Unit at the
University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester,
NY. He was also the founding Director of the Bone
Marrow Transplant Program at the University of
Rochester. Since 1994 he has been Chief of
Department of Hematology and Bone Marrow
Transplantation at the Rambam Medical Center, Haifa,
Israel. Dr. Rowe is the incumbent Dresner Professor
of Hemato-oncology and Vice Dean for Clinical
Appointments at the Bruce Rappaport Faculty of
Medicine of the Technion, Israel Institute of
Technology and also is an Adjunct Professor at the
Department of Medicine of Northwestern University,
Chicago, IL.
Dr. Rowe has actively participated in a wide range
of national and international research projects and
initiatives. He is a former Chairman of the Leukemia
Committee of the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group
(ECOG) and has developed and chaired many phase II
and III studies in leukemia, lymphoma and BMT. Dr.
Rowe is a frequent invited speaker or chairman at
international meetings and has published over 250
peer-reviewed articles, reviews and book chapters.
Prof. Gonen received his MD from Sackler Medical School in Tel-Aviv University. In
2002 he was appointed Associated Professor at the
Faculty of Medicine, Technion – Israel Institute of
Technology. Currently, Prof. Gonen is the Head of
the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the
Faculty of Medicine.
Prof. Gonen is the Senior Deputy Chairman of the
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the
Director of Maternal Fetal Medicine at the Bnai-Zion
Medical Center, Haifa, Israel.
In the years 1987-1989 he completed a Fellowship
program in Maternal Fetal Medicine at the University
of Toronto, Canada. In 1991 he received a diploma in
Health Management Administration from the University of Haifa.
Prof. Gonen is the author of 68 original articles, 2
chapters in Text Books, 27 presentations in
international conferences and numerous lectures in
national meetings.
Dr. Avinoam Kadouri
Dr. Kadouri is one of the leading scientists in
industrial biotechnology with a worldwide
reputation. He has 15 years’ experience as R&D
Director and worldwide Process Development Director
at Serono International. Dr. Kadouri is the former Chairman
of ACTIP (Animal Cell Technology Industrial
Platform), an important European Organization of the
major biotechnology companies in Europe. He is a
member of several Scientific Advisory Boards of
leading biotechnology companies in the US, Europe
and Israel.
Prior to working in the industry, Dr. Kadouri spent
many years in leading research institutes and at
universities as an Associate Professor. He has
published a large number of papers in life science
and biotechnology areas and holds several applied
patents. Dr. Kadouri is a key guest speaker in many
major international conferences in biotechnology in
the US and Europe.
Dr. Abraham Treves
Dr. Treves is a leading Israeli expert on
hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) who has published
more than 80 scientific publications, holds ten
patents, and has successfully obtained FDA approval
for clinical trials of an HSC product. He received
his Ph.D. at the Weizmann Institute of Science and
is currently the Executive Deputy of Israel’s Sheba
Cancer Research Center. He has directed many
industry and academic R&D programs in stem cell
therapy, immunology, hematology and oncology.
Dr. Treves was the founder, President and CEO of
Gamida-Cell Ltd., an Israeli biotechnology company
working in the field of HSC expansion, and was
instrumental in obtaining FDA approval for clinical
trials of stem cell biopharmaceutical product. He
has substantial experience in regulatory affairs for
biological and cell therapy, in clinical trials and
in manufacturing cell products under GMP. He is a
member of the American Society of Hematology and the
American Society of Clinical Oncology.
