Christopher Burns

Dr Burns is an experienced drug discovery leader having worked in various roles in pharma, biotech and academia for over 30 years. After 5 years he returned to Australia taking research leader roles at the University of Sydney and then biotechnology company Ambri. Chris then moved to the Melbourne-based biotech Cytopia as Head of Medicinal Chemistry and later as Research Director. Over this time, he led teams in the discovery of two anti-cancer agents that entered clinical trial (including the approved drug momelotinib). Chris was subsequently recruited to the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Melbourne as a Laboratory Head before taking on executive and leadership roles with several privately held biotechnology companies in Melbourne including Certa Therapeutics and MycRx. Dr Burns is the inventor on over 30 patents and a co-author on over 65 scientific publications.