Maria Maccecchini

Founded QR Pharma in May 2008 to develop better therapeutics for Alzheimer's disease. Was partner and director of two angel groups, Robin Hood Ventures and MidAtlantic Angel Group; Founder and CEO of Symphony Pharmaceuticals/Annovis a biotech company that sold in 2001 to Transgenomic; General Manager of Bachem Bioscience, the USsubsidiary of Bachem AG, Switzerland and Head Molecular Biology Mallinckrodt; Dr. Maccecchini did one postdoc at Caltech and one at the Roche Institute of Immunology, her PhD in biochemistry is from The Rockefeller University.

Maria Maccecchini received her PhD in biochemistry from Rockefeller University and spent two years at Caltech as a postdoc in molecular biology. She took her first job at Mallinckrodt as research scientist and her second job as general manager of Bachem Bioscience, a US subsidiary of a Swiss company.

In the early 1990s she started her own biotech company—Symphony Pharmaceuticals. After acquiring the Scottish and Japanese company Cruachem, Symphony later changed its name to Annovis. The company developed, manufactured, and marketed a variety of nucleic acid-based products and services for businesses in the life sciences sector. In 2001, Annovis was acquired by Transgenomic Inc. of San Jose, CA.

Dr. Maccecchini serves on several boards of biotechnology companies, organizations that promote entrepreneurship, international trade as well as women and charitable organizations. Currently she is a member and director of two angel funds – Robin Hood Ventures and Mid-Atlantic Angel Group. Dr. Maccecchini not only invests dollars in early-stage companies, but also mentors them in start up, strategy, management and finance.

Dr. Maccecchini holds over 40 patents, has authored numerous technical as well as business articles and has frequently participated in scientific and business conferences as speaker or panelist.