Bala Subramanian | COO & Head, R&D
Bugworks Research Inc.

Bala is a microbiologist and a drug hunter who received his PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and post-doctoral training at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, NY. Subsequently he gained leadership and management experience over two decades in the pharmaceutical industry. Among various roles, he has been a Project Leader, a Principal Investigator, a Department Head, Head of the Research Management, Executive Director at AstraZeneca India Pvt. Ltd., and most recently co-Founder and COO, Bugworks Research Inc. His technical experience is rich with 30+ years in Infection research and 25+ years in anti-bacterial drug discovery. He has led projects from basic biology through to early clinical development; led the PK/PD science for anti-TB drugs; co-discovered the target for the anti-TB drug, isoniazid; AZD5847 for the treatment of tuberculosis and BWC0977 for the treatment of critical care bacterial infections. Besides possessing extensive drug discovery experience, Bala is articulate with strong people skills and brings rich experience in working with cross-disciplinary and trans-national teams, establishing and sustaining collaborations as well as public-private partnerships. He has been a Principal Investigator in several prestigious research grants from CARB-X, GARDP, Wellcome Trust, NIAID, BMGF, EUFW7, and BIRAC - India.  Bala has a strong publication track record with many peer-reviewed publications in International high-impact journals such as Science, Nature, PNAS (USA) etc. He has chaired International conferences such as the Gordon Research Conference on TB Drug Development.