MURRAY MCKINNON, PH.D.
GLOBAL HEAD
WORLD WITHOUT DISEASE ACCELERATOR
As Global Head of the World Without Disease Accelerator (WWDA), Murray leads a team focused on catalyzing a paradigm shift from disease care to health care through novel approaches to prevention, interception and cure. Murray’s work is driven by a vision to create a world without disease and stop, reverse or inhibit an individual’s progression to disease.
Murray previously served as Global Head, Immunosciences, WWDA, where he led the development of a portfolio of WWDA therapeutic interventions, based on immunomodulation, mechanisms of chronic inflammation, and nutritional and drug discovery platforms, to better understand early-disease initiating events and ultimately develop novel therapies to prevent, intercept or cure disease.
With over 30 years of industry experience in global pharmaceutical roles, Murray brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise in drug discovery and early development, with a track record of driving scientific innovation in internal programs and through external partnerships. In his ten-year tenure at Janssen, Murray was Head of Immunology Discovery, responsible for leading global teams to identify transformational therapies in immune and inflammatory-mediated diseases. In parallel, he led the formation of Janssen Immunosciences to pursue innovative approaches to antigen-specific targeting in autoimmunity and cancer.
Prior to joining Janssen, Murray was Head of Immunology Discovery for Bristol Myers Squibb, where he led several programs in early clinical development. Before relocating to the USA in 2000, Murray held positions of increasing responsibility at GlaxoWellcome Research and Development in the UK, with a major focus on respiratory diseases, such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Murray holds a BSc from the Department of Biochemistry, University of Glasgow, Scotland, and a Ph.D. from the Imperial Cancer Research Fund (now Cancer Research UK), London.