Meet the team
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.
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.
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.
Joseph Senesac, MBA
Acting Chief Technology Officer
Joseph has 30 years of industrial experience in cell and gene therapy including 14 years in cell therapy at Bellicum Pharmaceuticals and 13 years in cell and gene therapy at Introgen Therapeutics. His expertise resides in process and analytical development and GMP manufacturing of viral vectors and gene-modified cell therapy products. He has extensive experience in building CMC strategies and mastered execution of these plans. He successfully reported CMC and GMP plans to regulatory agencies such as FDA, clinching multiple IND along the way across multiple types of cell therapies. To complement his CMC background, Joseph obtained the RAC certification for the United States and Europe from the Regulatory Affairs Professional Society. He also led successfully a Module 3 for the first gene therapy BLA filed for a novel gene therapy biotech in the US.
Besides his passion to build novel technologies in cell and gene therapy, Joseph works on old Alfa Romeos and has a 1968 Alfa GTA 1300 and a 1958 Alfa 750 Giulietta Spider Veloce. He won best in class in the US national Alfa Romeo Owners Club concours d’elegance with vintage Alfas multiple times. He is married with two daughters.
He holds a BA in Chemistry and Economics from Knox College, a BS from the University of Houston in Biology, and an MBA from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs.
Daman Kaur, CPA CIA
Comptroller and Chief of Staff
Comptroller & Chief of Staff to the CEODaman Kaur is a visionary finance executive with over 20 years of leadership experience across multinational biotech and pharmaceutical companies. She has held senior roles spanning Corporate Finance, FP&A, Strategic Planning, and Business Partnering, with a proven track record of aligning financial performance with business growth.
Throughout her career, Daman has partnered closely with clinical, commercial, and executive teams to optimize financial processes, strengthen capital allocation, and deliver sustainable value creation. She is recognized for building and leading high-performing global FP&A organizations, driving complex financial transformations, and enabling data-driven strategic decisions in dynamic, fast-paced environments.
As a trusted advisor to CFOs and executive leadership, Daman has consistently shaped financial strategies that supported long-term success across R&D, manufacturing, and commercial operations. Her passion lies in advancing the mission of life sciences companies through financial leadership that unlocks innovation, growth, and patient impact.
Daman holds a Master of Science in Accounting from the University of Alabama and is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Certified Internal Auditor (CIA). Outside of her professional journey, she is an avid traveler and enjoys exploring global cultures with family and friends.
MyLinh Duong, PhD
Principal Scientist
MyLinh has over 8 years of experience in the field of cell and gene therapy from her work on CAR-T and CAR-NK cells with Bellicum Pharma and NKILT Therapeutics. She produced numerous publications, and she was the key developer of dual-switch CAR-T cell and CAR-NK cell technology. MyLinh leads our lab as a principal scientist and has significantly contributed to the initial constructs developed by NKILT Therapeutics. She has a BS in biochemistry and cell biology from Rice University, completed her PhD training in cancer biology from The University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, and was a postdoctoral fellow at Baylor College of Medicine.
Jihyun Park, PhD
Senior Scientist
Jihyun is a highly enthusiastic and experienced cancer research scientist in the field of immunotherapy based on engineered immune cells (T and NK) and gene editing. During her postdoctoral fellowship, she extensively worked on oncogenic molecular events within triple-negative breast cancer. She earned a master’s degree in animal health and biomedical science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, then completed a PhD from The University of Texas at Austin in cell and molecular biology. She was a postdoctoral fellow for 5 years at MD Anderson Cancer Center.
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.
Carlos Martin, MBA
Chief Commercial Officer, Rocket Pharmaceuticals
Non-Executive DirectorVisionary biotech executive and board leader with over 20 years of experience spanning commercial strategy, drug development, and corporate growth. Carlos has held senior leadership roles at Novartis, Advanced Accelerator Applications, Schering-Plough, and Rocket Pharmaceuticals, with a proven track record of driving over $1B in revenue and advancing innovative therapies across oncology, rare diseases, and nuclear medicine.
Over the past decade, Carlos has focused on pioneering advanced therapeutics, from radiopharma to cell and gene therapies. As Chief Commercial Officer at Rocket Pharmaceuticals, he has transformed the company from an R&D-centric biotech into a commercial-ready global organization, integrating pricing, market access, and analytics to prepare for launches in autoimmune, cardiology, and hematology. Previously, at AAA (a Novartis Oncology company), he scaled the business to $650M within 2.5 years, while successfully integrating the acquisition into Novartis and delivering double-digit growth.
Carlos holds an MBA-IM in Global & General Management from Thunderbird School of Management, Executive Education in Global Strategy from Columbia Business School, and dual BBA/MBA degrees in Management and Economics from ESADE in Barcelona.
Beyond his professional focus, Carlos is deeply committed to transformational leadership, patient-centered innovation, and board service. He is passionate about scaling enterprises, optimizing market access, and shaping governance frameworks that unlock sustainable stakeholder value.
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.
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.
Peter Klein
Head region Europe, Exact Sciences
Independent Advisor to the Board of DirectorsPeter Klein is a senior healthcare executive with over 15 years of international leadership experience across oncology, diagnostics, and biotech. He currently serves as Head of Europe at Exact Sciences, where he drives growth and market access for innovative cancer diagnostics. Previously, he held senior roles at Novartis, Takeda, AstraZeneca, and Baxalta, leading commercial transformations and successful oncology product launches across multiple geographies. Peter brings expertise in strategy, market access, expansion, and organizational leadership to NKILT. He is a Co-Founder of Yarrow Capital.
Saar Gill, MD, PhD
Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of Hematology-Oncology, University of Pennsylvania
ChairmanDr. Gill received training in clinical hematology in his native Australia, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford University. Since 2011, he has been working on the development of genetically engineered immune cells for cancer treatment. Dr. Gill is a physician-scientist who places strong emphasis on translational research; concepts developed in his laboratory have already led to several clinical trials for the treatment of hematologic malignancies. He specializes in treating patients with leukemia and performing bone marrow transplantation. Furthermore, he has led clinical trials involving CAR-T cells for chronic and acute leukemias.
With a research laboratory focused on the interface between adoptive cellular therapy and genetic engineering, Dr. Gill stands as a foremost innovator in the field of cell and gene therapy. This is evident through his status as one of the most prolific patent inventors globally in the field and his creation of 2 biotherapeutics companies: Carisma Therapeutics, a developer of macrophage-based cellular therapeutics, and Interius BioTherapeutics, which is focused on in vivo delivery of gene therapies. Through his tireless efforts and exceptional achievements, Dr. Gill continues to push the boundaries of scientific knowledge and make significant contributions to the field of cancer treatment.
Maksim Mamonkin, PhD
Associate Professor, Columbia University – Co-founder, Board Director & SAB Chair, March Biosciences
MemberDr. Mamonkin received a PhD and postdoctoral training from Baylor College of Medicine, where he is leading a team focused on preclinical, manufacturing, and translational development of highly innovative engineered T-cell therapies for hematologic malignancies and alloimmunity.
Dr. Mamonkin’s research has yielded significant outcomes, including the initiation of 4 phase 1 clinical trials in leukemia and lymphoma, both in collaboration with academic institutions and sponsored by the industry. Additionally, his work has resulted in the licensing of multiple patents to biotech companies. With his expertise and contributions to the field, Dr. Mamonkin plays a vital role in advancing the understanding and application of engineered T-cell therapies, bringing new hope for patients with hematologic malignancies and alloimmune disorders.
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.
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.
Join us in engineering the future of cancer treatment
Interested in joining our innovative team led by experts in immunology, oncology, and cell therapy? We’d love to hear from you.
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