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John McKearn, Ph.D.
MANAGING DIRECTOR
ST. LOUIS, MISSOURIJOINED IN 2008
John has four decades of drug development and investing experience in life sciences. He joined RiverVest in 2008 and focuses on early-stage biotechnology investments. Currently, John serves on the boards of Bonum Therapeutics, Lymbus Oncology, OncoResponse, Inc., and OxaluRx, Inc. and is an observer at Myonid Therapeutics, Inc. He previously served on the boards of Allakos, Inc. (IPO), Arch Oncology, Inc., Adarza Biosystems, Inc., Good Therapeutics (acquired by Roche), Lumena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (acquired by Shire Plc), Otonomy, Inc. (IPO), Wugen, Inc. and ZS Pharma, Inc. (acquired by AstraZeneca Plc).
Prior to RiverVest, John was president and CEO and a director of Kalypsys, Inc. from 2003 to 2008, and an executive at Searle/Pharmacia (Pfizer, Inc.) from 1987 to 2003, where he held increasingly responsible positions, including the global head of Research. John helped establish the groundwork for studies that led to the commercialization of several major products, including DayPro®, Arthrotec®, and Celebrex®, one of the leading pharmaceuticals to treat arthritis. He also served on the boards of IDM Pharma, Inc. (acquired by Takeda America Holdings, Inc.), Epimmune, Inc., and Keel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Prior to 1987, John was a senior scientist at E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Company, a member of the Basel Institute for Immunology in Basel, Switzerland, and a research associate in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Washington University in St. Louis.
John holds a Ph.D. in Immunology from the University of Chicago and a B.S. in Biology from Northern Illinois University. He has co-authored more than 70 published, peer-reviewed scientific papers, and holds more than 50 patents and numerous patent applications, primarily in the areas of cancer treatment and inflammatory disease.