The Team
Scientific Leadership
Our team includes world-renowned neuroscientists and psychiatrists specialising in OCD research and drug development
Clinical Expertise
Experienced clinical researchers with proven track records in bringing therapeutics through regulatory approval
Patient Advocates
Incorporating the lived experience of OCD patients to ensure our approach addresses real-world needs
Together, we bring decades of combined experience in neuropharmacology, clinical psychiatry, and biotech innovation to address one of mental health's most challenging conditions.
Nick Sireau, PhD
CEO & Co-founder
Nick Sireau is an OCD advocate and also co-founder and Chair of Orchard OCD, a medical charity that funds academic research into OCD. Nick runs a support group for people with severe OCD where he lives in Cambridge, UK.
Nick is Chair of Trustees at the AKU Society, a patient group that helps people with AKU, a rare genetic disease affecting two of his children. Nick co-led an international consortium that successfully ran clinical studies and obtained regulatory approval for the first ever treatment for Alkaptonuria. Nick is co-founder and former Chair of Beacon for Rare Diseases. He is the editor of the 'Patient Group Handbook: A Practical Guide for Research and Drug Development'.
Nick has a PhD in social psychology. He is a fellow of the Ashoka Fellowship of Social Entrepreneurs.
David Cavalla, PhD
Executive Chairman & Co-founder
David Cavalla has 35 years experience in various senior scientific and commercial roles within the pharmaceutical industry. Previously he was founder and CEO of Arachnova Ltd, a company focused on therapeutic switching; previous affiliations included Glaxo Group Research Ltd and Napp Research Centre.
He is author of 'Modern Strategy for Pharmaceutical R&D — Towards the Virtual Research Centre', and 'Off-Label Prescribing: Justifying Unapproved Medicine' and editor of Drug Repurposing (RSC). He is on the editorial board of Drug Discovery Today. Formerly he was Chairman of the Society for Medicines Research. He obtained a first degree and PhD at Cambridge University and spent two years as a visiting Fellow at the the National Institute of Mental Health, Washington, DC. He is author/inventor of over 80 published papers and patents.
Julia Jones
CFO
After graduating from Loughborough University in 1997, Julia joined PriceWaterhouseCoopers and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 2001. For the last 15 years, as the founder and Managing Director of Archangel Accounting Ltd, Julia has provided tailor-made services to many companies, including IPO and fundraising support.
Julia has 24 years of experience as a finance professional with an established record of supporting biotech companies from start up through to exit, assisting in securing and then the management of £200m of venture capital funds.
Natalie Pankova
Board Director
Dr Natalie Pankova manages healthcare investments and portfolio at Zinc VC, which is an investor in Serenatis Bio. She is an experienced operator and investor in life science and healthcare, having led teams and built technologies across biotech, medtech and digital health on a global scale. She holds a PhD from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, and has advised organisations such as the WHO, EIC and UK Parliament.
Susanne Stuffers
Board Director
Dr Susanne Stuffers is CEO and Founding Partner of p53. She holds an M.D. degree from the Erasmus University Rotterdam, Netherlands, and a Ph.D. degree in cancer biomedicine from the Norwegian Radiumhospital. She gained broad experience in healthcare and life sciences, covering the sector from several angles. Susanne was a management consultant in health care (public and private) and life sciences at EY, served in medical and commercial roles in the pharmaceutical industry (Novartis), and has clinical practice as a resident in oncology. She worked with Arctic Securities as an equity analyst covering the healthcare sector, before joining forces with T.D. Veen to co-found and lead p53.
Prof Jon Grant
Clinical Advisor
Prof Jon Grant is Professor of Psychiatry at University of Chicago and director of a clinic and research lab on addictive, compulsive and impulsive disorders.
Jon is a psychiatrist and expert on addictive behaviors and compulsive and impulsive disorders. His research focuses on the neurobiology and treatment of impulse control disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder and drug addictions. He is an editorial board member of nine scientific journals.
Prof Trevor Robbins
Scientific Advisor
Prof Trevor Robbins is Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience and Director of the Behavioural and Clinical Neurosciences Institute, University of Cambridge. He is a fellow of the Royal Society.
Trevor Robbins is a renowned neuroscientist who has made significant contributions to our knowledge of how chemical neurotransmitter messengers influence brain function. His work has been crucial in advancing our understanding of numerous neurological and psychiatric disorders, including OCD, addiction and dementia.
Ekaterina Malievskaia
Advisor
Ekaterina is Co-Founder of Compass Pathways. She received her medical degree from St Petersburg Medical Academy in St Petersburg, Russia, and then moved to the US where she completed her internal medicine residency training. She was a Clinical Instructor of Medicine at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, as well as a Research Professor at City University of New York.
She founded Compass Pathways - working on psilocybin for depression - with her husband George Goldsmith in 2016, having experienced at first hand the challenges in accessing evidence-based and effective mental health care for a family member.
Our Collaborators
Sygnature Discovery
Sygnature Discovery is a leading integrated drug discovery partner and contract research organisation (CRO), specialising in high-quality research and expertise within the neuroscience speciality.
o2h discovery
o2h discovery is an integrated drug discovery contract research organisation (CRO) that specialises in medicinal chemistry and lead optimisation.
GeN.DDi
GeN.DDi is a specialised neuroscience contract research organisation (CRO) focusing on translational in vivo pharmacology for proof of concept studies.
Goodwin is a globally recognised law firm with expertise spanning the life sciences, biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies on their unique journeys.
Awards & Recognition
February 10, 2026
Our Therapeutics Programme Is On the One Nucleus Awards 2026 Shortlist
We are delighted to share that Serenatis Bio has been shortlisted for the Best Therapeutic R&D Programme of the Year at the One Nucleus Awards 2026.
This award celebrates excellence in the use of cutting-edge scientific innovation in the discovery and development of new therapeutics. Judges assess programmes on scientific originality, progress to date, potential to address unmet medical need and improve patient outcomes - areas that reflect the core strengths of our scientific and clinical strategy.
We are honoured that our work has been recognised by One Nucleus and look forward to celebrating alongside the other finalists next month.
February 4, 2026
We've Made the #21toWatch Shortlist!
Following our longlisting in December, we can now announce that Serenatis Bio has successfully made the #21toWatch 2026 shortlist, an initiative dedicated to showcasing, highlighting, and recognising the very best of entrepreneurship across Cambridge and the East of England.
The shortlist brings together a cohort of ambitious, high-growth companies driving innovation across the region. And fewer than a quarter of entries made it this far, which underlines the strength and quality of the field.
The final selection is now in the hands of the judging panel, with winners to be announced at the awards ceremony on March 5th.
February 2, 2026
Selected to Present at Bio-Neuroscience 2026
We’re pleased to share that Serenatis Bio has been selected as one of 12 neuroscience drug-development companies to present at the Bio-Neuroscience Conference 2026.
This follows a highly competitive, merit-based selection process, which assessed scientific innovation, clinical progress, therapeutic approach, and commercial potential across the entire neuroscience landscape.
This press release provides full details on the selection process and introduces all 12 of the companies that have been chosen to present - a truly inspiring group of innovators who are working across some of the most important challenges in brain health.
This follows a highly competitive, merit-based selection process, which assessed scientific innovation, clinical progress, therapeutic approach, and commercial potential across the entire neuroscience landscape.
This press release provides full details on the selection process and introduces all 12 of the companies that have been chosen to present - a truly inspiring group of innovators who are working across some of the most important challenges in brain health.
January 28, 2026
We Are a Bionow Start-Up Award Finalist
In what has been described as a "tough category" by the organisers themselves, we are delighted to confirm that Serenatis has been named one of three finalists for the Bionow Start-Up Award.
We are extremely honoured to receive this recognition, which provides further validation of our science, our growing momentum, and the dedication of the entire team.
The winner will be announced at the Awards Dinner on March 5, 2026, and we look forward to celebrating successes from across the sector alongside our fellow finalists on the night.
January 15, 2026
o2h Cambridge x London Life Sciences Showcase at JPM
JPM was a busy week for all concerned. It was also an extremely productive one for Serenatis as we continue to advance our latest funding round.
One particular highlight was our involvement in the o2h Discovery Cambridge X London Life Sciences Showcase, where we were invited to pitch at this exclusive event celebrating the Cambridge–London ecosystem.
Our presentation was very well received and sparked strong engagement from those attending.
We extend a big thank you again to everyone involved in organising such a fantastic showcase and look forward to engaging in similar opportunities in the future.
November 27, 2025
Named as BioSeed "One to Watch" at obnAwards 2025
We’re delighted to announce that Serenatis Bio was recognised with an OBN Award as a “One to Watch”.
This is a tremendous honour for our team. Being singled out by OBN - one of the UK’s leading life-sciences organisations - is a real validation of the progress we’ve made and the ambition behind our mission: developing truly novel medicines for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), an area that remains deeply underserved.
We’re also incredibly proud of what this represents:
• Recognition of the innovation behind our three-asset pipeline.
• Momentum as we advance towards clinical studies.
• A spotlight on the need for new, effective treatments for OCD.
• Encouragement for our team, partners and supporters who make this work possible.
This is a tremendous honour for our team. Being singled out by OBN - one of the UK’s leading life-sciences organisations - is a real validation of the progress we’ve made and the ambition behind our mission: developing truly novel medicines for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), an area that remains deeply underserved.
We’re also incredibly proud of what this represents:
• Recognition of the innovation behind our three-asset pipeline.
• Momentum as we advance towards clinical studies.
• A spotlight on the need for new, effective treatments for OCD.
• Encouragement for our team, partners and supporters who make this work possible.