Pablo Cabello Albendea is the Scientific-Technical Director of CRB Inverbío. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, where he also completed his postgraduate education in Human Genetics. He specialized in Molecular Genetics at the Centre of Human Genetics, Université Catholique de Louvain (1989-1990).

He began his career as a biologist working in the area of human health through his participation in the Spanish Collaborative Study of Congenital Malformations (ECEM, 1983). He worked in the Institute of Cellular Biology of the CSIC (1985) and in the Histopathology Service of the Hospital Fundación Jiménez Díaz (1986). He was responsible for the creation of the Molecular Genetics Laboratory at the Genetic Medicine Service of the Hospital Ramón y Cajal (Madrid).

An author and co-author of over 60 scientific articles published in specialist journals, he teaches courses in Clinical Genetics and is a founder of and partner in Cross Road Biotech.

Matt Mittino’s 20+ year career spans a wide range of healthcare sectors, geographic regions, and disciplines. In the areas of pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, and even veterinary medicine, he acquired operations expertise tackling global business challenges for Abbott Laboratories, once a Fortune 50 company. Matt has led growth, turn-around, and revitalization programs.

He currently provides operations expertise as a portfolio company CEO, board member, and advisor to VC funds, start-ups, and multinationals.

From 2012-2015, he served as Managing Director of Abbott Spain, leading the turn-around of the pharma division during the recent economic crisis. Prior to that role, Matt was instrumental in driving strategy and growth across pharma and diagnostics companies in Japan, Latin America, and the U.S.

A firm believer in giving back, Matt volunteers his time as a Scout Leader, sports coach, and mentor, and is a board member of various non-profit organizations.

Matt holds a BSc in Mechanical Engineering from The University of Notre Dame and an MBA with honors in Marketing and Finance from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Cristina Pérez obtained a degree in Economics from the University of Valladolid and completed a Master’s course on corporate tax and legal advisory services from the Valladolid Chamber of Commerce in collaboration with Garrigues Legal and Tax Services and the University of Valladolid.

An economist with 14 years’ experience in tax, accounting, and tax procedures, she has complemented her expertise with experience in her the financial departments of several companies, working for 5 years as a tax consultant in an economist firm and in recent years occupying positions of financial responsibility in various companies in the biotechnology sector.

A Doctor in Biology (Universidad Complutense, Madrid, 2003) Sergio Veiga’s thesis, written at the Cajal Institute (CSIC), described the neuroprotective and myelinating properties of neuroactive steroids. Part of his thesis work was performed in the Universita degli Studi di Milano, with financial support from a Marie Curie grant. After defending his thesis, he was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship in the Cajal Institute.

This was followed by a second postdoctoral stay of 4 years at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), where he studied degenerative processes following spinal cord injury. During the last 2 years of his stay, he was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship from the Craig H. Nielsen Foundation to finance his own line of research for 2 years. He has published 21 papers in international neuroscience journals. In January 2016 he joined the Department of Research and Development at Biocross S.L. as manager of research and development.

Miguel Calero holds a degree in Chemical Sciences (UCM, 1990), a PhD in Science (UAM, 1996), and a Masters in Direction and Management of R+D+i in Health Sciences (UAH, 2013). He is currently a research scientist at the Instituto de Salud Carlos III and CIBERNED, and director of the Chronic Diseases Program of the CIEN Foundation. He is the head of the national reference center for molecular diagnosis of human transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, a collaborator with the ECDC program for training and formation of microbiologists (EUPHEM), and a national expert in surveillance and diagnosis of human prion diseases for the ECDC.
An author of 94 articles with more than 3,000 citations and a h index of 28 (data from Scopus), his expertise is based on wide-ranging experience studying neurodegenerative disorders, mainly cerebral amyloidoses (including Alzheimer’s disease) and prion diseases (molecular diagnosis and characterization of the causal agent).

His current areas of research interest are i) molecular diagnostics; ii) basic research into genetic susceptibility markers and processing of amyloid precursor proteins; and iii) the molecular basis of conformational disorders including Alzheimer’s disease, prion diseases, and Parkinson’s disease.

Alberto Rábano is a Spanish neuropathologist and neuroscientist who since 2009 has served as Head of Neuropathology and Scientific Director of the CIEN Tissue Bank at the CIEN Foundation (Research Institute for Neurological Diseases, part of the Carlos III Health Institute). From 1997–2009 he was Head of Pathology and Research Director of a University Hospital in Madrid, during which time he oversaw the development of 3 brain banks in Madrid, Murcia, and Salamanca.

During the bovine spongiform encephalopathy crisis he oversaw the neuropathological diagnosis of prion diseases in several regions of Spain, including Madrid, and formed part several governmental committees dealing with surveillance and biosafety issues. He has participated in several research ethics committees and is currently member of the steering committee of the National Platform of Biobanks in Spain.

He has received several media awards for the promotion of brain donation. His research interests center on diagnostic and molecular neuropathology of neurodegenerative diseases, biospecimen science and biobanking, and ethical issues related to tissue donation for research. He is author of 105 original scientific papers and 5 book chapters.