Neumarker

Dr. Steve Paul is a highly influential figure in the biopharmaceutical industry, with a career spanning several decades of groundbreaking contributions to neuroscience and drug development. He is the founder and Chair of the Board of Directors at Seaport Therapeutics. Previously, Dr. Paul served as President, CEO, Chair of the Board, and Chief Scientific Officer at Karuna Therapeutics, where he led the company to its acquisition by Bristol Myers Squibb in 2024. Dr. Paul spent 17 years at Eli Lilly and Company, holding key leadership roles, including Executive Vice President for Science and Technology and President of Lilly Research Laboratories. He was instrumental in advancing the company’s research and development efforts, overseeing the development of notable CNS drugs such as Zyprexa and Cymbalta.  Before his tenure at Lilly, Dr. Paul spent 18 years at the NIH, serving as the Scientific Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). He is a co-founder of Sage Therapeutics and Voyager Therapeutics, where he also served as President and CEO. Additionally, Dr. Paul is a Venture Partner at Third Rock Ventures and previously directed the Appel Alzheimer’s Disease Research Institute at Weill Cornell Medical College. He is currently a Professor of Psychiatry and Neurology at Washington University.

Dr. Paul earned M.D. degrees from Tulane University.

Dr. Alan Breier is the Raymond E. Houk Professor of Psychiatry and Chief of the Psychotic Disorders Program at Indiana University School of Medicine. He also founded and directed the Prevention and Recovery Center for Early Psychosis (PARC). With over 35 years of experience, Dr. Breier is a prominent leader in psychiatry, specializing in the treatment and research of psychotic disorders, including schizophrenia.
Previously, Dr. Breier served as Head of the Zyprexa Product Team and Chief Medical Officer at Eli Lilly and Co., and held key leadership positions across scientific, industrial, and governmental committees. He has authored 300 published scientific articles and is widely recognized for his significant contributions to psychiatry and psychopharmacology.
Dr. Breier earned his M.D. from the University of Cincinnati and continues to influence the field
with his research and leadership.

Dr. Potter is a globally recognized thought leader in psychopharmacological sciences and an advocate for developing innovative treatments for CNS disorders. With over 25 years at the National Institutes of Health, he advanced through positions of increasing responsibility, focusing on translational neuroscience research. Following his tenure at NIH, Dr. Potter served as Executive Director for early clinical neuroscience at Lilly Research Labs and later as Vice President of Clinical and Translational Neuroscience at Merck. At Lilly and Merck, he excelled in identifying, expanding, and developing methods to evaluate CNS effects of compounds in the human brain using advanced approaches such as brain imaging, cerebrospinal fluid proteomics, and more sensitive clinical measures.

Dr. Potter continues to contribute to the field as an Emeritus Co-Chair of the Neuroscience Steering Committee of the FNIH and advises various organizations dedicated to brain diseases. He advocates for rigorous hypothesis testing of targets in humans through public/private partnerships, promoting this approach as the most effective way to advance CNS drug development for critical neurologic and psychiatric illnesses.

Dr. Potter earned his B.A., M.S., M.D., and Ph.D. at Indiana University.

Dr. Larry Alphs is a distinguished physician with extensive leadership experience in the pharmaceutical industry. He has held prominent roles, including Director at Novartis, Executive Director at Pfizer, and Therapeutic Area Leader for Psychiatry at Johnson & Johnson. He also served as Principal Founder and President of the International Society for CNS Clinical Trials and Methodology (ISCTM). Dr. Alphs has led numerous programs focused on central nervous system disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, suicidality, anxiety, depression, epilepsy, neuropathic pain, traumatic brain injury, and Rett Syndrome. With over 200 publications to his name, he has also developed key clinical trial scales for assessing negative symptoms of schizophrenia, extrapyramidal symptoms, and suicidality. He is the author of a number of scales used to assess safety and efficacy in clinical trials.  His contributions continue to drive advancements in psychopharmacology and clinical research methodologies. 

Dr. Alphs earned both his Ph.D. and M.D. from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine.

Larry Ereshefsky, Pharm.D., B.C.C.P, F.C.C.P, is an internationally recognized clinical psychiatric pharmacist and translational scientist with a strong background in biomarker development and validation (EEG, imaging), shepherding new medications through early phase through proof of concept, and guiding commercialization of new medications. He has held key roles, including Regents Professor of Pharmacy, Pharmacology, and Psychiatry, Director of the Psychiatric Pharmacy Program at the University of Texas, and Director of the Psychopharmacology Research Program at the University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio. Dr. Ereshefsky has also served as VP and Global Leader for CNS Early Phase at PAREXEL International.  He has made significant contributions to the field, serving on the United States Pharmacopeia Committee for Psychiatry for over 15 years and twice on the FDA Psychopharmacological Drugs Advisory Committee. Currently, Dr. Ereshefsky is the Chief Scientific Officer at CenExel Research and Follow the Molecule LLC and chaired the working group on drug development for Behavioral and Psychiatric Symptoms in Dementia at ISCTM.

Dr. Ereshefsky’s PharmD and Residency in Psychopharmacology and Clinical Pharmacy were at the University of Southern California and LA County Medical Center and is Board Certified in Clinical Psychopharmacy.