Our Company

Errol De Souza, PhD, Chair

Dr. De Souza is a seasoned R&D and business leader with broad experience – from large pharma to start ups – in the discovery and development of therapeutics for the treatment of central nervous system (CNS) disorders. Dr. De Souza is currently the executive chairman of Bionomics Limited and a member of the board of directors of Royalty Pharma and Catalyst Biosciences. Previously, Dr. De Souza founded Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc., served as CEO of numerous publicly traded and private companies, including Biodel, Inc., Synaptic Pharmaceutical Corp., Archemix Corp. and Neuropore Therapies, Inc. In addition, he led CNS R&D at DuPont Merck and US R&D at Aventis. Dr. De Souza received a B.A. in physiology and a Ph.D. in endocrinology from the University of Toronto.

Peter Hecht, PhD

Dr. Hecht served as the co-founder and chief executive officer of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from 1998 to 2019. Under his leadership, Ironwood grew from nine Ph.D. scientists to a commercial biotechnology company that discovered, developed and is now commercializing LINZESS^® – the branded prescription market leader in its class. Additionally, during his tenure the company pioneered new areas of science, delivered a promising development portfolio with multiple innovative drug candidates and established a valuable network of global partnerships. Through a combination of private and public equity, structured debt and partnerships, Dr. Hecht and his team raised over one billion dollars to fund these efforts. He also served on the Ironwood board from 1998 to 2019, and currently serves on the board of Kallyope Inc., a privately held biotechnology company.  Prior to founding Ironwood, Dr. Hecht was a research fellow at Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research. Dr. Hecht earned a B.S. in mathematics and an M.S. in biology from Stanford University, and a Ph.D. in molecular biology from the University of California at Berkeley. 

Steven Hyman, MD

Dr. Hyman is a Distinguished Service Professor and the Harald McPike Professor of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology at Harvard University and a Core Institute Member of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, where he directs the Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research. Dr. Hyman also serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Charles A. Dana Foundation, which supports research and education in neuroscience. In the private sector, he is founder of Emugen Therapeutics, a Director of Voyager Therapeutics and Q-State Biosciences, and serves on the scientific advisory boards of Janssen Pharmaceuticals and F-Prime Capital.

From 2001 to 2011 Dr. Hyman served as Provost of Harvard University. From 1996 to 2001, he served as Director of the National Institute of Mental Health where he emphasized investment in neuroscience and emerging genetic technologies. He has served as Editor of the Annual Review of Neuroscience (2002-2016), founding President of the International Neuroethics Society (2008-2013), President of the Society for Neuroscience (2015), and President of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (2018). He is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a member of the National Academy of Medicine. Dr. Hyman received his B.A., summa cum laude, from Yale College, an M.A. from the University of Cambridge, which he attended as a Mellon fellow studying History and Philosophy of Science, and an M.D., cum laude, from Harvard Medical School.

Ole Isacson, MD, PhD

Dr. Isacson brings extensive medical and scientific insight with a deep understanding of central nervous system (CNS) diseases, and experience leading the R&D function of a multinational biopharmaceutical company. He currently serves as the professor of neurology and neuroscience at Harvard Medical School, a principal faculty member at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute. He is the founding director of the Neuroregeneration Institute at McLean Hospital, where he has served as a director since 2010. From 2016 to 2017, Dr. Isacson served as chief scientific officer and senior vice president for Pfizer’s Neuroscience and Pain Worldwide R&D Division. He served as Editor In Chief of the journal Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience and is on the board of numerous scientific journals. He is a founding member and past President of the American Society for Neural Transplantation and Repair, and past President of the international Cell Transplantation Society. He serves as a reviewer and advisor to the NIH, DOD, FDA, Industry and many patient community groups, and was elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in 2014. He is the author or co-author of over 300 scientific research publications and three books in neuroscience and neurology.  Dr. Isacson received his Medical Bachelor and Doctor of Medicine degrees from the University of Lund in Sweden. 

Terrance McGuire

Mr. McGuire brings over 35 years of biotechnology venture capital experience as co-founder and general partner of Polaris Partners, where he has provided early stage funding and leadership counsel for over 80 medical and information technology companies. Prior to starting Polaris Partners, Mr. McGuire spent seven years at Burr, Egan, Deleage & Co., investing in early stage medical and information technology companies.  Mr. McGuire currently serves on the boards of Adimab and Alector.  He is a member of the boards of The Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College, The David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and The Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship at Harvard Business School. Mr. McGuire has previously served on the boards of Cubist Pharmaceuticals, Acceleron Pharma, Arsanis, and Pulmatrix, among others. Mr. McGuire was formerly chair of the National Venture Capital Association.  In 2020, he was honored by the NVCA with the Outstanding Service Award.  In 2015, Mr. McGuire was listed as one of Scientific American’s Worldview 100 visionaries who continue to reshape biotechnology and the world. He is also a recipient of the Massachusetts Society for Medical Research Award, and the Albert Einstein Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Life Sciences, awarded by Harvard and the City of Jerusalem. He was awarded honorary doctorate degrees from Ohio Wesleyan University and Canisius College for his work in translational science. Mr. McGuire earned a B.S. in physics and economics from Hobart College, an M.S. in engineering from The Thayer School at Dartmouth College, and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.