Wellesley Hills, Mass. – – September 13, 2026 -- Cure Alzheimer's Fund (CureAlz) has appointed Drs. Michelle Arkin, Ronald B. DeMattos, Donna M. Huryn, and Kalpana Merchant to its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB), adding decades of pharmaceutical drug-discovery experience to the nonprofit's research-funding strategy.
Board addition brings direct experience from an FDA-cleared Alzheimer's drug
Ronald B. DeMattos spent more than 20 years in neuroscience discovery at Eli Lilly, most recently as Senior Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer for Neurobiologics, where he led development of candidates that advanced to clinical studies including donanemab, the FDA-cleared amyloid-lowering antibody marketed as Kisunla for early Alzheimer's disease.
New members combine academic and industry drug-discovery backgrounds
Michelle Arkin is Professor of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Executive Director of the Small Molecule Discovery Center at the University of California, San Francisco, with prior industry experience at Sunesis Pharmaceuticals and co-founder roles at four therapeutics startups. Donna M. Huryn, Professor of Practice in Chemistry at the University of Pennsylvania, previously worked in drug discovery at Hoffmann-La Roche and Wyeth Research and is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Chemical Society. Kalpana Merchant, a translational neuroscientist with more than 30 years in neurological drug development, formerly served as Chief Scientific Officer for Tailored Therapeutics–Neuroscience at Eli Lilly and now leads TransThera Consulting Co.
CureAlz maintains independence from pharmaceutical funding while tapping industry expertise
CureAlz CEO Meg Smith said the additions strengthen an already-exceptional board and reinforce the organization's focus on funding high-impact Alzheimer's research. The nonprofit does not accept funding or direction from pharmaceutical or biotech companies but draws on SAB members' industry-honed insights to guide investment decisions spanning target identification, drug discovery, and clinical development.