Dr Seth Lederman | Co-Founder, Chief Executive Officer & Chairman
Tonix Pharmaceuticals

Seth Lederman is CEO of Tonix Pharmaceuticals. Prior to Tonix, and his career in Biotech, Dr. Lederman served as tenured Associate Professor at Columbia University and directed basic science research in molecular immunology, infectious diseases and the development of therapeutics for autoimmune diseases. At Tonix, Dr. Lederman has contributed to formulating sublingual transmucosal eutectic cyclobenzaprine in development for fibromyalgia and Long COVID, engineering an anti-CD40L (CD154) mAb with reduced FcγRIIa-binding in development to prevent organ rejection and treat autoimmune disease and synthesizing horsepox in development as a monkeypox and smallpox vaccine and as a vector for vaccines to protect against other pathogens. At Columbia, his fundamental work on CD40L elucidated the molecular basis of T cell helper function and led to the development of therapeutic candidates. In collaboration with Prof. David Baltimore (then at Rockefeller University and later MIT), Dr. Lederman identified and functionally characterized the CD40 signaling molecule, TRAF-3. His early work on HIV contributed to elucidating how the V3 loop of HIV gp120 was involved in fusion with CD4 cell membranes, an early and essential event in viral entry and infection. In addition to his research, Dr. Lederman served as attending physician in Arthritis and Autoimmunity (Rheumatology) Clinic and on the Medical Service at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital (now New York Presbyterian Hospital). Dr. Lederman earned his M.D. from Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons and his AB from Princeton in Chemistry.