Christopher Missling, PhD

About

Christopher U Missling, PhD, has spent more than twenty years working with the aim to bring new treatments to people living with disorders of the central nervous system, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and rare conditions such as Rett syndrome and autism, including Fragile X syndrome. His focus has been precision medicine and longevity and oncology — matching the right science to the biology of each disease so treatments reach the patients most likely to benefit. Much of his work centers on neurodegeneration and the cellular mechanisms behind it, including pathways like autophagy that help cells clear damage and stay in balance. Turning that early science into medicines that can be tested in the clinic, and eventually reach families, has been the throughline of his career. He has led teams through late-stage clinical development in Alzheimer's disease and built research pipelines spanning Parkinson's, schizophrenia, and neurodevelopmental conditions, most recently as President and CEO of Anavex Life Sciences. Earlier roles across biotechnology and finance, including at ImmunoGen, Aventis (now Sanofi), and Deutsche Bank, taught him how to connect science, capital, and strategy, the three things any therapy needs to travel from an idea to a patient. Dr. Missling holds a PhD in metallorganic chemistry and an MBA from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. What drives him is simple: meaningful change for the patients and families living with neurological disease.

Video

Photos & Videos

Roles

Mentor

Christopher is an approved MedStartr Mentor.