Tavistock Group's Shehan Dissanayake, Ph.D., Appointed to AMDeC's Board of Directors

NEW YORK, May 1, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- AMDeC, the Academy for Medical Development and Collaboration, today announced the appointment of Shehan Dissanayake, Ph.D., CEO of Tavistock Life Sciences and senior managing director of Tavistock Group, to the board of directors of the AMDeC Foundation and AMDeC LLC.

Dr. Dissanayake has significant experience as a biomedical researcher, entrepreneur and investor in the life sciences industry. At Tavistock, an international private investment company, Dr. Dissanayake is responsible for portfolio strategy across 200 companies in 15 countries, including investments in the public and private life science sectors of Australia, Canada, Europe, United Kingdom and United States.

In addition, Dr. Dissanayake is co-director of the Lake Nona Medical City in Orlando, Fla., where, for this innovative biomedical enterprise, he is instrumental in the development of a medical school, graduate school of biology and chemistry, two research institutes and 1.5 million square feet of hospital facilities. He is also a member of the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute Board of Trustees, which operates campuses in La Jolla, Calif., and Lake Nona.

"As a scientist, entrepreneur and investor, Dr. Dissanayake brings an invaluable perspective to our board that will advance AMDeC's focus on providing greater value to our membership while identifying new ways to fuel collaboration between academia and the commercial life science industry," said Maria Mitchell, Ph.D., president and CEO of AMDeC. "Beyond this, his expertise, energy and extensive network of contacts will help drive the expansion of AMDeC nationally."

Dr. Dissanayake said, "My involvement in AMDeC is driven by the irresistible opportunity to learn from and work with some of the best research institutions and hospitals in the world, in one of the best places in the world."

Prior to working with Tavistock, Dr. Dissanayake was a managing partner at Arthur Andersen where he oversaw strategy and business planning for a $3 billion annual global legal, tax and human resources consulting division and was the director of the $500 million Andersen Venture Fund. Dr. Dissanayake was a postdoctoral fellow at Northwestern University, conducting research relevant to polycystic kidney disease and examining the physiological effects of growth factors in ZO-1 protein translocation and transepithelial resistance in cells. He received his bachelor's degree in biology and chemistry with highest honors from Skidmore College, and he received his Ph.D. in pharmacological and physiological sciences from The University of Chicago.

This expansion of the board of directors increases its membership to 23. Dr. Dissanayake will join current board members Maurice R. Greenberg, co-chairman, John C. Whitehead, co-chairman, Maria Mitchell, Ph.D., president, Stanley Brezenoff, Pamela S. Brier, Dennis S. Charney, M.D., John F. Collins, Kenneth L. Davis, M.D., Richard L. Edwards, Ph.D., Antonio M. Gotto, Jr., M.D., D.Phil., Lee Goldman, M.D., M.P.H., Robert I. Grossman, M.D., William R. Harman, Stephen S. Mills, Michael J. Novacek, Ph.D., Ralph A. O'Connell, M.D., Herbert Pardes, M.D., Deborah M. Sale, Bruce W. Stillman, Ph.D., Marc Tessier-Lavigne, Ph.D., Craig B. Thompson, M.D., and Kevin J. Tracey, M.D.

About AMDeC

AMDeC is a consortium of pre-eminent academic medical research institutions that promotes collaborative research relationships between the academic biomedical research community and the life science industry.  Since its founding in 1997, AMDeC has led the way in team science, resource-sharing efforts, member services focused on cost savings and technology access, and private sector participation with academia.  AMDeC creates programs and services, such as AMDeC F.I.R.S.T.™, the Vendor Partnership Program and the Technology Access Program, to facilitate collaboration and efficient use of resources, with the goal of expediting discovery. For more information, log on to http://www.amdecllc.com or contact [email protected].

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SOURCE AMDeC