Loretta Beine is a Senior Director of Business Development for the Department of Economic Development doing business as Empire State Development. Empire State Development, New York State’s economic development agency is committed to promoting business investment and growth that leads to job creation and prosperous communities across the state.

Though based on Long Island, Loretta offers business development financial and technical programs and services to companies in the biomedical sector throughout the state.

Loretta is an advocate for the 401 Project. 401’s focus is to unite affected families, to increase awareness and to fund research projects designed to advance a cure for MECP2 Duplication Syndrome (MDS). MECP2 Duplication Syndrome (MDS) is a genetic mutation ideally suited for targeted gene therapies. Nearly all cure research has been funded by families and friends of those affected by the set of symptoms.

Doug Thiede is Senior Vice President of Life Sciences & Healthcare at NYCEDC. In

this role, Doug is responsible for leading LifeSci NYC, New York City’s Ten Year, $500

million commitment to catalyze commercial life sciences growth. LifeSci NYC invests in

infrastructure, real estate, talent and funding to support economic growth in the life

sciences industry. Additionally, Doug oversees the Healthcare portfolio, including

efforts to support and expand Community Health & Digital Health innovation in New

York City. Doug leads a strong team of professionals committed to these efforts in New

York City. Prior to joining NYCEDC, Doug worked in both the pharmaceutical and

medical device industry including Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Spinal Concepts, Leica

Microsystems, and Confluent Surgical. In 2009, Doug moved to New York City to help

launch Gerson Lehrman Group’s life sciences business. He is a graduate of the

University of Virginia.

Karen Heidelberger is a Partner and Chief Partnership and Communications Officer at Deerfield and joined the Firm in 2002. She is responsible for relationships with investors, partner companies, academic institutions and other interested parties. Prior to this role, Ms. Heidelberger was a Trader at Deerfield for over a decade. Before Deerfield, Ms. Heidelberger was a Vice President in the Sales and Trading division of Merrill Lynch, and served as a Conflicts Coordinator in the Mergers and Acquisitions department. As Conflicts Coordinator, she was responsible for ensuring that Merrill Lynch was clear of legal and business conflicts of interest before the firm was able to accept an assignment. Ms. Heidelberger has approximately 17 years of experience in healthcare and 24 years of experience in finance. She is involved in Deerfield’s Break into the Boardroom and Women in Science programs, and currently serves on the Board of NewYorkBIO and the Cornell Institute for Healthy Futures. Ms. Heidelberger graduated from the Cornell University, School of Hotel Administration and earned her M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

Patrice P. Jean is Co-Chair of Hughes Hubbard's Life Sciences group. She has over a decade of experience counseling leading and startup pharmaceutical, chemical and biotechnology companies in all areas of patent law. In particular, she is adept at asserting and defending the patent rights underlying the core technologies and innovations of leading high-tech and pharmaceutical companies. She also defends her clients against claims asserted by competitors, sparing them billions of dollars in damages. Additionally, her patent prosecution practice strengthens her litigation abilities, allowing her to argue the validity of her clients' patents while challenging the validity of third-party patents. Patrice regularly calls on her technical background in biology to offer her clients an in-depth understanding of the complex science relative to each prosecution and litigation matter that she handles. This vantage point leaves her well-positioned to understand the complex science behind her clients' innovations as well as the broader market implications. Prior to law school, Patrice earned her Ph.D. in molecular biology. She conducted research in various areas of biology and biochemistry including virology, oncology, kidney disease, X-ray crystallography and narcotics addiction. Her doctoral thesis is titled "Tissue, Strain, Gender and Age Variation in the Induction of p53 Activated Transcripts in Response to Cellular Stress."