Board of Directors - MediciNova, Inc.
Dr. Himawan is Managing Director for Essex Woodlands Health Ventures. At Essex Woodlands, Dr. Himawan has led several of the firms' investments in the biotechnology arena, including an investments in Symphogen (a Danish-based company with a novel, antibody-producing platform technology), Iomai (a company with a method of delivering vaccines through the skin), Light Sciences Oncology (a company focused on the development of Light Infusion Technology™ for the treatment of solid tumors), and MediciNova. Prior to joining Essex Woodlands, Dr. Himawan was co-founder and Managing Director of Seed-One Ventures (Seed-One), a venture capital firm that specializes in the initial formation, financing, and early operational development of technology-based companies. At Seed-One, Dr. Himawan created and managed several early-stage companies including Elusys Therapeutics, a New Jersey-based biotechnology company. Prior to his experiences at Seed-One ventures, Dr. Himawan was a bench scientist with basic research experience in both industrial and academic settings. Dr. Himawan holds a B.S. degree in biology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and obtained a Ph.D. degree in biological chemistry and molecular pharmacology from Harvard University.
Dr. Iwaki holds three professorships at the University of Southern California School of Medicine in the Departments of Urology, Surgery and Pathology and has been Director of the Transplantation Immunology and Immunogenetic Laboratory since 1992. He is also a visiting professor at the Nihon University School of Medicine, Kyushu University and the Tokyo Women's Medical School in Japan. Prior to joining the faculty at the University of Southern California School of Medicine, Dr. Iwaki held professorships at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in the Departments of Surgery and Pathology from 1989 through 1991. He received both his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from Sapporo Medical School in Sapporo, Japan. Dr. Iwaki is the author of 200 peer-reviewed publications and more than 40 books. He has been advising pharmaceutical companies and venture capital funds regarding research and investment strategies for over 20 years and is a board member of several biotechnology companies.
Mr. Kobayashi has more than 20 years of experience in business. In addition, he was elected a member of Upper House in Japan in 2001 and 2007. He graduated from Waseda University and was a Fellow at Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.
Mr. Ishizaka complements the MediciNova Board with 50 years of experience in marketing and product development with Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC). His international experience includes assignments in Japan, Europe and the U.S. Mr. Ishizaka started his career at TMC after graduating with a degree in law from the Hitotsubashi University in Japan. He served as Senior Vice President and Chief Coordinating Officer at Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A, Inc. (TMS) from 1986 to 1990 and was instrumental in the development of the Lexus Division. He accepted the appointment of General Manager of TMC's Europe Division in 1990 where he built an integrated, local organization in Europe. In 1992, he was named to TMC's Board of Directors and returned to TMS U.S.A. to serve as President from 1996 to 1999. He returned to Japan in 1999, whereupon he was promoted to Senior Managing Director in charge of overseas operations. In 2001, he was promoted to Executive VP in overseas operations for TMC, and in 2005, became Senior Advisor to the TMC Board.
Mr. Nagao complements the MediciNova Board with 40 years of experience in finance and corporate law with financial institutions in Japan. Mr. Nagao started his career at Development Bank of Japan and, in 2006, he accepted the position of Senior Director, Department of Corporate Finance. In 2008, Mr. Nagao moved to Sagawa Financials, Inc. where he served as Financial Director. In 2012, he became Director at Sagawa Global Logistics and, in 2013, he served as President of Sagawa Asset Max. Currently, Mr. Nagao is an auditor at Sagawa Advance-SG Systems. He previously served as a Board Member for MediciNova from 2004 – 2010. Mr. Nagao holds a degree from the Faculty of Law of Tokyo University.