Our Team
Our passionate and dedicated experts work with clients to deliver tailored solutions from discovery to commercialization.
Founded to Accelerate Advanced Therapies
Franklin Biolabs is led by a seasoned executive team with deep expertise in biotechnology, analytical services, and advanced therapeutic development – starting with founder and executive chairman, Dr. Jim Wilson. The team’s collective leadership drives our mission to deliver high-quality, innovative solutions for clients across the life sciences industry—ensuring scientific excellence, operational efficiency, and long-term success.
Having started his work in gene therapy nearly 40 years ago, Dr. Wilson was recruited to the University of Pennsylvania in 1993 and created the first and largest academic-based program in gene therapy. His laboratory discovered a family of viruses from primates called adeno-associated viruses (AAV) that could be engineered to be very effective gene transfer vehicles. These “vectors” have become the technology platform of choice and have set the stage for the recent resurgence of the field of gene therapy.
Dr. Wilson has also been active in facilitating the commercial development of these new gene therapy platforms through the establishment of eight biotechnology companies. His research has been focused on rare inherited diseases, ranging from cystic fibrosis to dyslipidemias to a variety of neurologic disorders and liver metabolic diseases, as well as how to address such unmet needs in patients from marginalized populations. To date, his team’s accomplishments include 3 FDA-approved AAV-based gene therapies, 40+ active programs in development, 95 patents on gene therapy-related technologies, and first-in-patient studies in 15 different diseases.
Executive Leadership Team
Dr. Naageshwaran is an award-winning executive with more than 20 years of experience advancing innovative therapies for patients as well as supporting technical and commercial operations to deliver multimillion-dollar revenues and top-line growth. Dr. Naageshwaran has deep operational and transactional experience in multiple therapeutic areas for small molecules and cell and gene therapies.
Dr. Naageshwaran spent the majority of her career at a major service provider for the life sciences industry, involved in all aspects of decision making to develop the pipeline and global portfolio for multiple business verticals and key market sectors.
Anthony Asfor serves as the Chief Financial Officer at Franklin Biolabs, a leading genetic medicines contract research organization (CRO) dedicated to advancing cell and gene therapies from discovery through development and distribution. In this role, Anthony oversees the company’s financial strategy, driving fiscal discipline and sustainable growth to support Franklin Biolabs’ mission of delivering innovative solutions to the global genetic medicines industry.
A Certified Public Accountant (CPA) licensed by the New Jersey Society of Public Accountants and certified by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Anthony brings over two decades of financial leadership in the clinical research and pharmaceutical manufacturing sectors. At ICON Clinical Research, a global leader in clinical development and commercialization services, Anthony played a pivotal role in optimizing financial operations for clinical trial programs, enhancing cost efficiency, and ensuring compliance across multinational projects. His expertise in managing budgets for Phase II-IV clinical studies supported ICON’s delivery of high-quality outcomes for pharmaceutical and biotech clients worldwide.
Subsequently, at Catalent Pharma Solutions, a global contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), Anthony contributed to financial strategies that supported the development and supply of biologics and gene therapies. His work focused on streamlining financial processes for clinical supply chains and manufacturing operations, enabling Catalent to deliver over 320,000 clinical supply patient kits annually and support more than 50% of FDA-approved products in the last decade. His efforts bolstered Catalent’s ability to accelerate drug development timelines and enhance product performance for global biotech partners.
Prior to joining Franklin Biolabs, Anthony served as a financial leader at Rice Industries, where he was recognized for his strategic vision and results-driven approach. Based in Abington, Pennsylvania, and educated at Saint Joseph’s University, Anthony combines his deep industry expertise with a passion for advancing healthcare innovation. At Franklin Biolabs, he leverages his extensive experience to strengthen the company’s financial foundation, enabling the acceleration of groundbreaking genetic therapies to improve global health outcomes.
Jenny holds a Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Pharmacology and a PhD in Gene Therapeutics from the University of Glasgow in Scotland. Jenny joined the University of Pennsylvania’s Gene Therapy Program (GTP) in 2010 and during her nearly 15 years there progressed from being a postdoctoral researcher investigating muscle and liver transduction with gene therapy vectors to being Executive Director overseeing a team of scientists focused on genome editing, oncology, and capsid discovery.
Following two previously successful Investigational New Drug (IND) submissions, she recently led her team through the development of an AAV-delivered, meganuclease-mediated gene insertion approach for the treatment of ornithine transcarbamylase (OTC) deficiency to FDA clearance for iECURE to initiate the OTC-HOPE clinical trial. Jenny is a member of the American Society for Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT). She is also the first author of more than 15 peer-reviewed scientific papers and is co-inventor on nine patent applications.
In this role, Ken is responsible for manufacturing and analytics.
Previously, Ken worked at the Gene Therapy Program at the University of Pennsylvania since 2018 serving as Executive Director of process development and manufacturing.
Ken earned a MS degree in chemistry from Clarkson University and an MS and PhD in Bioengineering from Cornell University.
In this role, Patrick (Pat) is responsible for the Quality function for the company, ensuring compliance with customer expectations, regulatory requirements, and industry standards.
Previously, Pat was Head of Quality – Baltimore at Catalent Pharma Solutions in 2024 and Sr. Director Quality, Drug Product Division at Thermo Fisher Scientific from 2018 through 2024.
Pat earned a BA in Biology from Rutgers University and an MBA from Temple University. He has also achieved American Society for Quality (ASQ) certifications for Pharmaceutical GMP Professional, Manager of Quality/Organizational Excellence, Quality Auditor, and Biomedical Auditor.
In this role, Scott serves as the visionary for the Human Resources function, and oversees all aspects of HR management, including talent acquisition, organizational development, employee relations, performance management, compensation, benefits, payroll, and compliance.
Additionally, Scott works closely with the executive team to drive HR initiatives and implement strategies that support the company’s mission and enhance employee engagement, retention, and performance.
Previously, Scott held positions in HR at several other prominent companies, including Pharmaron, Pfizer, Merck, and Penn Medicine. Scott has a deep understanding of the life sciences sector, and a proven track record of success in developing and executing scalable HR strategies that support business growth and drive employee engagement.
Scott earned a master’s degree in human resource development from Villanova University and is certified as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) by the HR Certification Institute.
Board of Directors
Having started his work in gene therapy nearly 40 years ago, Dr. Wilson was recruited to the University of Pennsylvania in 1993 and created the first and largest academic-based program in gene therapy. His laboratory discovered a family of viruses from primates called adeno-associated viruses (AAV) that could be engineered to be very effective gene transfer vehicles. These “vectors” have become the technology platform of choice and have set the stage for the recent resurgence of the field of gene therapy.
Dr. Wilson has also been active in facilitating the commercial development of these new gene therapy platforms through the establishment of eight biotechnology companies. His research has been focused on rare inherited diseases, ranging from cystic fibrosis to dyslipidemias to a variety of neurologic disorders and liver metabolic diseases, as well as how to address such unmet needs in patients from marginalized populations. To date, his team’s accomplishments include 3 FDA-approved AAV-based gene therapies, 40+ active programs in development, 95 patents on gene therapy-related technologies, and first-in-patient studies in 15 different diseases.
Mehul Bhatt is an accomplished executive with extensive experience in board directorships, strategic leadership, and sustainable development. He currently serves as the Head of Strategy for Savanne Life Sciences. Among other boards, he serves on the board of Business Mauritius, an independent association that represents over 1,200 Mauritian businesses. Prior to his current role, Mehul held several key positions within the Rogers Group, including Chief Strategy and Sustainability Executive, where he was instrumental in shaping the company’s strategic direction and sustainability initiatives. He also served as Managing Director for East Africa at Velogic, a subsidiary of Rogers specializing in logistics and supply chain solutions.
Mehul’s career includes significant international experience with renowned organizations such as A.P. Moller-Maersk and Chevron, where he held various strategic, financial, and operational roles across the United States, Denmark, East Africa, the United Kingdom, and India.
Mehul holds a Bachelor of Science from the BITS, Pilani, India, and a Master of Business Administration from the London Business School. Throughout his career, Mehul has demonstrated a strong commitment to strategic growth, sustainability, and operational excellence, making significant contributions to the organizations of which he has been a part.
Mehul lives in Mauritius with his wife and two daughters.
Fresh out of his Bachelor’s in Laws and International Relations from the University of New South Wales [Australia], Jacob founded a conservation-focused NGO in Colombia to protect one of the world’s richest marine ecosystems from illegal fishing. After his graduation, Jacob was informally involved with Bioculture Group, advising the board on legal and business strategy. In 2019, he joined the company as Head of Business Development.
Annalisa Jenkins, M.B.B.S., F.R.C.P. is a biopharma thought leader with over 25 years of industry experience. Dr. Jenkins has extensive recent experience in building and financing biotech companies pursuing cures for the most challenging rare diseases to address important medical issues globally. She has consistently built and led teams advancing programs from scientific research through clinical development, regulatory approval, and into healthcare systems globally. In addition, she is an advocate for diversity and inclusion, particularly for women in science.
Dr. Jenkins served as president and CEO of Dimension Therapeutics, a leading gene therapy company that she took public on the NASDAQ and subsequently sold to Ultragenyx. Prior leadership roles have included the head of global research and development and executive vice president global development and medical at Merck Serono, and several senior positions at Bristol Myers-Squibb over 15 years – including serving as senior vice president and head of global medical affairs. Earlier in her career, Dr. Jenkins was a medical officer in the British Royal Navy during the Gulf Conflict, achieving the rank of surgeon lieutenant commander.
Dr. Jenkins is a board member of several growing companies, including Oncimmune, AVROBIO, COMPASS Pathways, AOBiome, AgeX, ADOR Diagnostics, MedCity, DMNoMore, Conduit Connect, Affimed, Genomics England, Blue Advent, Cocoon Biotech Inc. (Non-Executive Chair), and Kuur Therapeutics (Non-Executive Chair). She also is a committee member of the Science Board to the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, which advises FDA leadership on complex scientific and technical issues, board member at FasterCures (a center of The Milken Institute), and Chair of The Court, The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Howard Palefsky is an accomplished executive member in the life sciences, healthcare, and medical technology industries. He has led life science and med tech organizations to significant growth, creating value exceeding $4 billion. He has also served on the boards of more than 30 organizations and has played a pivotal role in establishing more than 20 businesses, spearheading numerous capital raises, Initial Public Offerings and acquisitions.
Moreover, he has overseen more than 40 new product launches across the US, Europe, LATAM, and Asia Pacific, gaining invaluable strategic insight into regulatory affairs and reimbursement mechanics in multiple geographies.
Howard is currently chair and president of the private investment firm Victoria Capital Management, which counts several notable companies in its investment portfolio. Among them: Mana Health (sold to Comcast), Laserscope (sold to AMS), Resound Corp (sold to GN Danavox), Novacept (sold to Hologic), Oclassen Pharmaceuticals (sold to Allergan), Calgene (sold to Monsanto), Innovasive Devices (sold to Johnson & Johnson), Interventional Technologies (sold to Boston Scientific) and Ekso Bionics (EKSO: NASDAQ).
Howard also joined Montreux Equity Partners, as Managing Director and one of the two senior partners. He was an integral part of the team that secured in excess of $500 million in Limited Partner Interests. He played key roles in the firm’s investments and exits in 20 companies.
Howard witnessed the biomedical revolution through his long-standing tenure with Collagen Corp, a pioneering company operating in the field of clinically validated products for facial aesthetics. Collagen was a pre-revenue, venture-funded start-up organization when Howard joined as CEO. He spent the next 19 years growing Collagen through numerous product launches in the U.S., Europe, and Japan, generating substantial profitability.
He also directed Collagen’s very profitable investment in Pharming N.V. (NASDAQ: PHAR). To address unmet or underserved market requirements, he established a joint venture with Eli Lilly called Target Therapeutics, which developed disposable medical devices for use in minimally invasive procedures for the treatment of vascular conditions of the brain.
Besides his impact in the life sciences industry, Howard has played a vital role on boards of arts & culture organizations. Howard chaired the finance committee and the board during the considerable financial turnaround of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, rendering it one of the few cash-flow-positive orchestras in the world.
In addition, during Howard’s time as chair of the development committee of the Atlanta Opera, the Opera raised $45 million to help fund operations. Arts and Culture organizations with whom the Palefskys have worked to secure funds have raised more than $200 million in philanthropic contributions as a result of their efforts.
Dr. Eckart Schwarz is a seasoned senior pharmaceutical executive with an impressive 30+ year track record of leading global strategic initiatives and building/managing large teams & budgets transnationally. Dr. Schwarz is currently the President of Quantocks Consulting, a bespoke Life Science and Drug Development consultancy. A long-term Senior Vice President in various pivotal roles in GSK, he has been recognized for his transformational leadership in designing and building global strategic and operational solutions and teams in most of the disciplines involved in drug development, such as Clinical Development, Medical Affairs, Regulatory Affairs, Quality and Compliance, Organizational Development and Global Resource strategies / offshoring.
Trained as a physician / anesthesiologist in the UK, Eckart has an impeccable academic pedigree which includes an Honorary Fellowship of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine of the Royal College of Physicians (London, England). His stance is resolutely global, having worked and lived in Germany, Belgium, the UK, Singapore, India and the US, where he is now based (Philadelphia area). He is a dynamic leader with exceptional analytical capabilities, deep and broad experience and expertise, strategic visionary outlook, high personal energy, and compelling communication skills.
Dr. Schwarz earned his Preclinical degree from Bonn University, Germany, his MD from Bristol University, UK, and his MPhil in the History of Medicine from Cambridge University, UK.