Our Leadership
At AbelZeta we are committed to developing novel immune cell therapies to address cancerous and inflammatory & immunological diseases.
TONY (BIZUO) LIU
Chairman and CEO
Mr. Liu joined AbelZeta in 2013 as Chairman of the Audit Committee. Subsequently, Mr Liu joined the company as Chief Financial Officer in 2014 and was appointed Chief Executive Officer in February 2016.
From 2009 to 2012, Mr. Liu served as the Corporate Vice President at Alibaba Group, leading B2B corporate investment, and corporate finance, and served as General Manager for the B2C international e-commerce platform “AliExpress” and led Alibaba’s overseas investments. From 2012 to 2014, Mr Liu was Chief Financial Officer for Alibaba’s subsidiary HiChina, a leading internet infrastructure service provider.
Prior to joining Alibaba Group, Mr Liu spent 19 years at Microsoft Corporation in Seattle, where he served in leadership roles with progressive responsibilities from Corporate Accounting Director, Microsoft China CFO, to General Manager of Corporate Strategy, leading Microsoft’s China investment strategy and Microsoft global strategic planning process.
Mr. Liu holds a Bachelor of Science in Physics from Suzhou University, China.
YIHONG YAO, PHD, BS
CHIEF SCIENTIFIC OFFICER
Dr. Yao joined the Company in 2015 as Chief Scientific Officer responsible for Immune cell research and development as well as translational medicine in cancer and autoimmune diseases.
From 2005 to 2015 Dr. Yao was at Medimmune as Director, Head of Pharmacogenomics and Oncogenomics in translational science, the biologics research and development arm of AstraZeneca with responsibilities in clinical biomarker discovery and development, strategy and personalized medicine. Before joining Medimmune, Dr. Yao was with Abbott BioResearch Center, and prior to that worked as a postdoctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins University.
Dr. Yao holds a B.S. degree in Biochemistry from FuDan University, a master’s degree in bioinformatics from Boston University and a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology & Biochemistry from University of Kansas.
ANDREW CHAN, JD, MBA
CHIEF LEGAL OFFICER
Mr. Chan joined the Company in 2011 and served as Chief Financial Officer from 2011 to 2014. From 2000 to 2011 Mr. Chan was with the Rockwell spin-off group of semiconductor companies. From 2003 until 2011, Mr. Chan was with Jazz Semiconductor and held various leadership roles in supply chain management, business operations, business and corporate development. From 2001 to 2003, Mr. Chan was Vice President of Business Operations and Supply Chain Management for Mindspeed Technologies (now MACOM). In 2000, Mr. Chan served as Vice President of Supply Chain Management at Conexant Systems (Mindspeed and Jazz were part of the Conexant spin-off group of companies). From 1994 to 2000 Mr. Chan served as Sr. Director in Forecasting, Supply Chain Management and Strategic Business Development at AlliedSignal’s Aerospace Division (now Honeywell). Prior to that Mr. Chan served as mainframe programmer and turbine engine service center manager at Eastern Airlines and as Director of Technical and Production Planning at Continental Express, the commuter division of Continental Airlines (now United Airlines).
Mr. Chan holds a B.S. degree in Management from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, a Master of Business Administration (MBA) with specialization in Computer System Management and Operations Research from Nova University, and a Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D.) from South Texas College of Law.
MICHAEL HAVERT, PHD
SVP, REGULATORY AFFAIRS & PROGRAM HEAD US
Dr. Michael Havert joined the Company as SVP, Regulatory Affairs and Program Head in January 2022. His focus is on the fields of pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, specifically gene therapy products. Dr. Havert formerly served as Vice President, Regulatory Affairs at StrideBio from 2021 to 2022; Senior Director, Regulatory Science, CMC/Gene Therapy and Gene Editing at bluebird bio from 2019 to 2021; Biologist/CMC Reviewer Gene Therapy Branch Division of Cellular and Gene Therapies, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies (OTAT) CBER FDA from 2004 to 2019.
At bluebird bio, Dr. Havert was part of a team dedicated to developing innovative gene therapies for severe genetic diseases and cancer. His roles at the FDA included serving as BLA Review Chair, championing the release of guidance documents, and working toward global harmonization efforts.
He received a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin and conducted postdoctoral fellowships in virology at National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Johns Hopkins University (JHU) and graduated summa cum laude from Boston University with a major in Biology, minor in Chemistry.
JIAQI HUANG, MD, PHD
SVP, Translational Science
Dr. Huang joined the Company in 2015. Her experience is focused on oncology, translational science, PK/PD and biomarker discovery and development.
From 2007 to 2015 Dr. Huang served as Principal Scientist Translational Science at MedImmune/AstraZeneca where she contributed to multiple oncology drug programs. From 2003 to 2007 Dr. Huang was Senior Geneticist, Human Genetic Medicine at J. Craig Venter Institute, playing a key role in the analysis the first human individual genome. From 2000 to 2003, she worked on cancer gene discovery at Incyte.
Dr. Huang holds an M.D. degree from Nanjing Medical University, a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from University of Miami School of Medicine and Postdoctoral training from Department of Cancer Genetics at Ohio State University.
Dr. Huang is co-inventor of fifteen patents including methods of treatment for hematologic malignancies and autoimmune disease . She has published thirty-five papers in translational science peer-reviewed journals.
BARBARA MITTLEMAN, MD
VP, Clinical Development
Dr. Mittleman joined the Company in October 2024. She is a rheumatologist and immunologist with clinical training at the University of Pittsburgh and post-doctoral training at NIH. Her career at the NIH was varied and concluded with founding and directing the Public-Private Partnerships Program in the Office of the Director coordinating NIH-wide partnerships with the pharmaceutical and biotech industries. Following NIH, Dr. Mittleman joined Nodality, Inc. where she served as VP, Immunology.
Dr. Mittleman also worked in clinical development in CSL Behring, Inc., at Applied Molecular Transport, Inc., and at Alumis, Inc. where she focused on translating scientific discoveries into clinical applications in immunology and autoimmune diseases including dermatomyositis, SLE and GI disease.
Dr. Mittleman earned her medical degree from University of Pittsburgh, followed by a residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in rheumatology at UPMC, followed by postdoctoral and advanced work at the National Institute of Arthritis, Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and the NIH Office of the Director.
Dr. Mittleman is a Fellow of the American College of Rheumatology. She has contributed to numerous peer-reviewed publications and continues to play an active role in advising on medical research and strategic healthcare initiatives.
DONGYAO NI, MD
SVP, GLOBAL BD & LICENSING AND CORPORATE AFFAIRS
BARBARA MITTLEMAN, MD
VP, Clinical Development
Dr. Mittleman joined the Company in October 2024. She is a rheumatologist and immunologist with clinical training at the University of Pittsburgh and post-doctoral training at NIH. Her career at the NIH was varied and concluded with founding and directing the Public-Private Partnerships Program in the Office of the Director coordinating NIH-wide partnerships with the pharmaceutical and biotech industries. Following NIH, Dr. Mittleman joined Nodality, Inc. where she served as VP, Immunology.
Dr. Mittleman also worked in clinical development in CSL Behring, Inc., at Applied Molecular Transport, Inc., and at Alumis, Inc. where she focused on translating scientific discoveries into clinical applications in immunology and autoimmune diseases including dermatomyositis, SLE and GI disease.
Dr. Mittleman earned her medical degree from University of Pittsburgh, followed by a residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in rheumatology at UPMC, followed by postdoctoral and advanced work at the National Institute of Arthritis, Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and the NIH Office of the Director.
Dr. Mittleman is a Fellow of the American College of Rheumatology. She has contributed to numerous peer-reviewed publications and continues to play an active role in advising on medical research and strategic healthcare initiatives.