John Lacey

Massachusetts Biotechnology Council is a premier life sciences and healthcare hub with over 1,600 members dedicated to preventing, treating, and curing diseases through transformative science and technology. The non-profit company is based in Cambridge, MA. MassBio works to advance policy and promote education while providing member programs, events, industry information, and services. The company's mission is to advance Massachusetts' leadership in the life sciences to grow the industry, add value to the healthcare system, and improve patient lives. Founded in 1985 by James P. Sherblom, the CEO is Kendalle Burlin O'Connell.

Genzyme Corp. engages in development and manufacture of specialty therapeutic, surgical and diagnostic product. It serves in the areas of rare genetic diseases, multiple sclerosis, cardiovascular diseases and endocrinology. The company was founded on June 8, 1981 and is headquartered in Cambridge, MA.

Polaris Partners is an Independent Venture Capital firm founded in 1996 by Stephen D. Arnold, Jonathan A. Flint and Terrance G. McGuire. Polaris Partners is headquartered in Waltham.

Sirtris Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a GSK company, is developing small molecule drugs that target the sirtuins, a family of seven enzymes associated with diseases of aging. Modulation of these enzymes offers the promise of drug discovery in multiple therapeutic areas. Sirtris was one of the pharmaceutical companies focused on the sirtuin platform and remains the innovative drug discovery. Preclinical research indicates that the sirtuins play important roles in pathways for multiple diseases of aging, including Type 2 Diabetes, as well as neurodegenerative, cardiovascular and inflammatory diseases. Sirtris researchers are working to translate this research into a potential new class of pharmaceuticals to treat diseases of aging, offering the ability for people to live longer, healthier lives. Sirtris has focused on developing many novel small molecule activators of SIRT1, the most studied member of the sirtuin family. These new chemical entities or NCEs are novel compounds that are chemically unrelated to resveratrol, a naturally occurring compound that was used as an early proof-of-concept for SIRT1 activation. Besides being structurally differentiated from resveratrol, the NCEs are more specific for the target SIRT1 and have improved drug-like properties. The company has completed several early stage translational clinical studies with the first generation NCEs and has several active clinical trials under way. Sirtris operates as an independent Discovery Performance Unit (DPU) within GSK and is located in Technology Square, Cambridge, Mass. Sirtris' culture mixes scientific curiosity with a dynamic, fast-paced environment, resembling its biotech roots while harnessing all of GSK's broad discovery, development, and commercialization capabilities. The company was founded in 2004 and is headquartered in Cambridge, MA.