With more than 30 years of life science industry experience, Mark Benedyk,
PhD is Senior Advisor to Olfax. He has worked with startups, venture funds
and other asset management groups in healthcare throughout his career.
Prior to Olfax, Mark founded Alyra Therapeutics, a company focused on
small ras GTPase inhibitors for the treatment of cancer and key pediatric
orphan diseases. He previously headed The Pfizer Incubator (TPI) in La
Jolla, CA where he held board positions with TPI and its portfolio
companies. Before that, he held executive positions at Ascenta
Therapeutics, Optimer Pharmaceuticals (now Merck (NYSE: MRK)), Aurora
Biosciences (now Vertex (NASDAQ: VRTX)) and Elan Pharmaceuticals
(now Perrigo (NYSE: PRGO)).
Dr. Benedyk is a director at RARE Science, an organization focused on
developing cures for pediatric rare diseases.
Dr. Benedyk received a BS in Microbiology and Botany from the University
of Michigan, and a PhD in Developmental Genetics from The Rockefeller
University, where he was a Lucille P. Markey Graduate Fellow.