Editor Profiles

Igor Grachev, M.D., Ph.D. is a Neurologist, Psychiatrist, Neuroscientist, Drug Developer, Translational Medicine/POC, Clinical Development, Medical Affairs and Imaging expert with over 20 years of extensive Pharma industry, academic and CRO biomedical research experience who has had roles of increasing responsibility and scope at MGH/Harvard Medical School, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Schering-Plough, Sanofi-Aventis, Merck, BioClinica, Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp, GE Healthcare, and Novartis Consumer Health. All his industry roles have involved the application of imaging, biomarkers and clinical neuroscience to drug development. Dr. Grachev is a member of the Coalition Against Major Diseases (CAMD), QIBA DCE-MRI, FDG- and amyloid-PET steering committees of RSNA, ADNI and ADNI2, Society of Nuclear Medicine, International Society to Advance Alzheimer Research and Treatment and has written and co-authored over 100 clinical research scientific publications including chapters on imaging biomarkers/technologies in three books “Methods in Pain Research (CRC Press),” “Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (IASP Press)” and “Imaging in CNS Drug Development (Springer Science, NY),” and served as a Chair of Industry Scientific Advisory Board for Parkinson’s Progression Markers Initiative, Michael J. Fox Foundation. Research interest: Neurobiology of Neurodegenerative disorders (Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis), Insomnia (incl. PSG), OCD, Depression, Anxiety, Schizophrenia, ADHD, Migraine, Acute & Chronic Pain, Stroke and other indications. Expert in clinical biomarkers and the following Imaging modalities: PET, SPECT, and MRI (Gd-MRI, vMRI, fMRI, MRS, DCE-MRI).

Dr. Yan Leyfman Since high school, Yan’s research endeavors have resulted in the development of several highly efficacious anti-cancer therapies that have effectively halted disease progression after just one treatment and have recently entered clinical trials. At Stony Brook, Yan helped to elucidate the efficacy of a novel drug that successfully eradicated colon, prostate, breast and pancreatic cancers in xenograft models after just one treatment using a nanomolar concentration with minimal side effects. These successes have led to the development of a start-up company that will soon translate this drug from the laboratory bench to the hospital bedside. These early research successes were recognized by such organizations as the Barry M. Goldwater Research Foundation and the Sigma Xi International Research Honor Society, given mention in both the New York Times and USA Today, as well as being cited by both National Society of Collegiate Scholars and Harvard Medical School. Several years later, Yan developed a novel genetic platform at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) for targeted delivery of Chimeric Antigen Receptors (CARs), which are synthetic receptors that combine the targeted-specificity of antibodies with the effector capabilities of immune cells, which reduced the side effect profile to single digits while greatly enhancing therapeutic efficacy in mouse models. This therapeutic platform has recently entered clinical trials and results of this project were showcased at several international research conferences, including the largest, global oncology conference, the American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting, where Yan was the first-ever medical student to give a podium presentation. In addition to his lecture, Yan’s contributions have earned him the recognition as one of the top 15 medical student researchers focused on oncology by both the American Society of Hematology and American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)— the two largest and most widely cited cancer research organizations in the world. Research interest: Immunotherapeutics Gene Targeting & Therapy Oncology Hematological Malignancies

Gerardo Rea Mendoza is currently working a Thoracic Surgeon in Organismo Público Descentralizado de Hospitales Civiles de Guadalajara, Hospital Civil Fray Antonio Alcalde, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. He got MD from Universidad de Guadalajara, México. Research interest: Minimmaly Invasive Thoracic Surgery, Lung Cancer Uniportal VATS