Position: Founders
Simon Wain-Hobson, PhD
Emeritus Professor, Co-founder & Chief Scientific Liaison Officer
Executive Director MemberSimon is an Emeritus professor at the Pasteur Institute in Paris with more than 230 scientific papers to his credit. He started his work there on hepatitis B virus and switched to HIV following the isolation of the virus by Luc Montagnier. He was the first to publish the genetic blueprint of HIV. This allowed the granting of numerous patents for the detection of HIV.
There followed more than 25 years of work devoted to studying the pathology of this virus and how it demolished remorselessly the immune system.
Through one of the quirks of science that science conjures up, his group found a way from HIV to cancer biology. Being the first to show that a novel human enzyme was capable of mutating the human genome, he contributed to the acceptance that genome damage by such enzyme is every bit as important to oncogenesis as cigarette smoking or UV light. After expanding his work in cancer, it was a short step to cancer biotech.
He joined NKILT Therapeutics as a co-founder in 2022, making it is second co-founded biotech since 2010 in the field of cancer therapeutics.
He has a PhD in biochemistry from the University of Oxford followed by an EMBO long-term fellowship at the Weizmann Institute in Israel. This was followed by his move to the Pasteur Institute.
He’s an elected member of the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO), Academia Europa and is a rare foreign member of the US National Academy of Inventers.
Simon collects 18 century English drinking glasses and has published numerous articles on the subject.
Henri Bayle, Ph.D.
CSO & CDO, Co-founder
Executive Director MemberDr. Bayle is a creative scientist with 30 years of post-graduate experience in biotech and academia. His training in Oncology, Immunology and Developmental Biology, led to a focus on the development of innovative molecular switches to regulate protein activity for biological impact. This ultimately brought him to Bellicum Pharmaceuticals to develop innovative methods to regulate CAR-T and CAR-NK with small molecules yielding 2 IND in solid tumors. During his 9 years at Bellicum he led the Discovery Program and rose to VP of all Research.
After seeing first-hand the impact that engineered cell therapy can have on cancer treatment, Henri co-founded NKILT Therapeutics with Raphael Ognar with the purpose of making engineered cell therapy available to more patients across cancer indications.
Henri has a PhD in Molecular Biology from Princeton University and performed his post-doctoral work in Pathology at Stanford University School of Medicine. He was Assistant Professor of Physiology and Biophysics at Baylor College of Medicine prior to joining Bellicum.
Outside of his R&D activity, Henri enjoys repairing and remodeling old houses and automobiles as well as experimental cooking for his family, friends and neighbors.
Raphaël G. Ognar, MSc, MBA
President & CEO, Co-Founder Chairman
Executive DirectorVisionary and charismatic biotech executive with over 27 years of experience spanning commercial strategy, drug development, and product lifecycle management. Raphaël has held key global and regional leadership roles at top-tier pharmaceutical companies including Novartis Oncology, Celgene, and Bristol Myers Squibb, with a 22-year track record of success in Oncology and Hematology.
Over the past decade, Raphaël has deepened his focus on Immuno-Oncology and Cell Therapy, culminating in the founding of NKILT Therapeutics, Inc. in 2021. Prior to this, he launched ANIM8 LLC, an executive advisory firm providing strategic and operational consulting for early-stage biotech.
Raphaël holds a Master’s degree and a D.E.A. in Physiology and Neurosciences from the University of Bordeaux I & II, as well as an MBA in Strategic Marketing and Enterprise Management from IAE Tours University.
Beyond his commitment to advancing cancer therapies, Raphaël is an avid rock climber, vintage wine enthusiast, musician and front man in his family band, and passionate animal rescuer who enjoys traveling the world with family and friends.