The Management Team
Dr. Christian Thirion
CEO, Founder
Christian O. Thirion, Ph.D. serves as Chief Executive Officer, Chief Technology Officer, and founder of SIRION Biotech GmbH since 2005. He held multiple leadership positions over a nearly fifteen-year tenure and was responsible for SIRION's scientific direction and strategic planning.
Prior to founding SIRION Christian was a postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Gene Therapy at Universitätsklinikum Ulm and led a team for neuromuscular disorders research at the Universitätsklinikum der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. Christian holds a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and holds a diploma in Chemistry, both from Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. Since February 2020 Christian serves as a Board Member of InProTher Aps.
Dieter Lingelbach
Chief Operating Officer
Dieter has a longstanding general management experience with both Roche Diagnostics, Roche Applied Science and MorphoSys. Today, the latter is one of the world’s leading bio-technology companies on the basis of its proprietary antibody platform.
Earlier, Dieter worked several years with Booz & Company’s healthcare practice after receiving his MBA from Indiana University as a Fulbright Scholar.
Dr. Michael Salomon
SVP, Development
Michael joined SIRION Biotech in September 2007. Prior, he acted as leader of a research group at the Botanical Institution of Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich (LMU) and as Head of Research and Development at Vertis Biotechnology AG in Freising, Weihenstephan. There, he gained broad and profound experience in molecular biology, biochemistry, cell biology, and functional genomics.
His special expertise over the years has been with viral vector technologies. He received his Ph.D. in biology at the LMU in Munich, Germany in 1991.
Dr. Kathrin Schneider
SVP, Global Business
Kathrin serves as Senior Vice President, Global Business at SIRION Biotech and is heading the commercial team.
She joined SIRION Biotech in early 2011 and was mainly involved in converting SIRION`s viral vector technologies into a profitable business. In her time at SIRION, she has risen through several leading positions within the company, all related to Business Development, Sales & Marketing, and Strategy.
Kathrin received her diploma in biomedical sciences from the University of Marburg in 2007 with a focus on molecular biology, human genetics, and virology. Her Ph.D. she received in molecular biology from the University of Würzburg. During this time she gained insight into analytical method development by working for Bayer HealthCare Leverkusen and cancer research at the “Institute of Molecular Biology and Tumor Research” (IMT) in Marburg.
Dr. Sabine Ott
SVP, BD & Licensing
Sabine Ott, Ph.D., serves as Senior Vice President, Business Development and Licensing and joined SIRION Biotech GmbH in 2016. Sabine has 20 years of broad experience in the biotech and biopharmaceutical sector. She previously served as Director of Business Development at GeneWake GmbH (now R-Biopharm AG), where she was responsible for leading collaborations, licensing transactions, and business development.
Prior, Sabine served as Marketing and Product Manager at MWG Biotech AG (now part of Eurofins Scientific S.A.). Sabine holds a Ph.D. and diploma in Biology/Genetics from Ludwig-Maximilian-University Munich and University Konstanz.
Dr. Carl Christel
VP, US Operations, SIRION Biotech, International, Inc.
A true dual-citizen of American and German descent, Carl has lived and worked as a molecular biologist on both sides of the Atlantic. After receiving his Ph.D. at the Technical University Munich (Germany) he completed 4 productive years as a Post-Doc at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine.
With his well-based understanding of molecular physiology and his unique bilingual background, he functions as a vital connection between the Germany-based headquarters and its foreign accounts – making SIRION Biotech’s global communication fast, clear, and precise. Since 2020 Carl serves as Vice President of SIRION Biotech International, Inc, heading the team in Boston.
Dr. François Vromman
VP, Global Head of Sales
After working for SIRION Biotech as an external consultant for 3 years, François joined SIRION Biotech in August 2018. He holds a Ph.D. in Cellular Microbiology obtained at the Institut Pasteur (Paris) where he gained profound skills in host-microbe interaction and cellular biology. He completed his training with a Business certificate from the INSEAD Business School bringing additional expertise in Management, Economics, and Strategy among others.
After a year of entrepreneur experience, François worked as a Business Development Consultant for three years in which he assisted many companies in Life Science & Biotech industry in their strategic development in Europe. During that time, he conducted market studies and significantly grew businesses through sales and partnership development. François is passionate about innovative technologies and using various business strategies to recognize their value in bringing new products to end users.
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