ELTHERA - Key Persons


Anne Schmidt - CEO

Job Titles:
  • CEO
  • Member of the Board of Directors
  • Member of the Management Team
Anne Schmidt has co-founded Elthera AG and is CEO and member of the Board of Directors. She is a seasoned executive with 20 years of experience in different management positions in Biotech and pharma companies, most recently at ESBATech / Novartis. Anne has extensive experience in the development of diagnostics and vaccines and a track record of successfully leading antibody development projects from the research stage to the clinical proof of concept. Four of her projects have resulted in a positive proof of concept in clinical phase 2 studies. She holds a PhD in Immunology from the University of Stuttgart.

Dominik Escher

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Board of Directors
Dominik Escher is a biotechnology entrepreneur. He was a founder of ESBATech and was leading the company as CEO since its inception in 1998 until 2016. He raised more than USD 90 million venture capital for ESBATech AG. In 2009, ESBATech AG

Dr. Bettina Ernst

Job Titles:
  • Investor
Dr. Bettina Ernst is a biotech entrepreneur and investor. She has expert knowledge in immunology acquired in different academic positions in Europe and the U.S. and has since worked in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. Bettina currently serves as the CEO of Preclin Biosystems AG, and she serves on the Board of Directors of several biotech companies. She is vice president of the board of the Swiss Biotech Association, a member of the Innovation Council of Innosuisse and a member of the advisory board of the Swiss Entrepreneurs Foundation.

Gunther Spohn - CSO

Job Titles:
  • CSO
  • Member of the Board of Directors
  • Member of the Management Team
Gunther Spohn has co-founded Elthera AG and is CSO and member of the Board of Directors. Gunther is a senior drug development professional with more than 18 years of experience in the Biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry. He served in different management positions in preclinical drug development, most recently at ESBATech/Novartis, and has a track record as a leader of early drug development projects in the field of therapeutic antibodies and vaccines. He has expert knowledge in the pharmacological characterization of antibodies and the development of bioanalytical methods for preclinical and clinical studies as well as extensive expertise in diverse aspects of drug development such as preclinical efficacy and safety testing, process development, patenting, regulatory filings.

Jacques Gaudreault - COO

Job Titles:
  • COO
  • Member of the Management Team
Jacques has co-founded Elthera AG and is COO and member of the Board of Directors. He has more than 23 years of experience from different senior leadership positions in the pharmaceutical industry and has worked as a preclinical and clinical pharmacologist, Project Leader, and Discovery Unit Head. During his employment at Genentech, Jacques has been involved in the development and approval of several biologics, including the blockbusters Avastin (an anti-VEGF antibody for treatment of several tumor types), and Lucentis (an antibody for the treatment of Age-Related Macular Degeneration). He holds a PhD in Pharmaceutics from the University of Montreal and a BSC in Pharmacy.