Liping Liu, PhD & MBA
Founder, Chairwoman and CEO
Dr. Liping Liu, having founded HighTide in 2011, brings over 20 years of R&D leadership experience during which she accumulated a wealth of knowledge and perspective in the discovery and development of novel therapies. She is a pioneer in the field of metabolic and digestive diseases with extensive industry experience across the drug development cycle with a track record of leading clinical development for innovative drugs. Dr. Liu is a prolific scientist with over 100 patents and patent applications to her credit. Prior to founding HighTide, Dr. Liu served in leadership positions at various companies including CTL ImmunoTherapies Corporation, MannKind Corporation, Stealth Peptide Inc., and ABLE BioGroup LLC.
Dr. Liu received her bachelor's degree in chemistry and doctoral degree in physics of polymer from Nankai University, completed post-doctoral training at the University of Toronto, and obtained a master of business administration degree from the Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School.
Leigh MacConell, PhD
Chief Development Officer
Dr. Leigh MacConell is a global drug development professional with a robust history of success in the design and execution of clinical drug programs for major regulatory milestones across multiple therapeutic areas, including metabolic and liver diseases. Before joining HighTide, Dr. MacConell served as Senior Vice President, Clinical Development at Intercept Pharmaceuticals, where she provided strategic and scientific leadership to their global clinical development programs across the portfolio and all therapeutic areas culminating in a first-in-class approval for primary biliary cholangitis and precedent-setting clinical development plans in MASH. Prior to Intercept, she served in various management positions at Amylin Pharmaceuticals, where she ultimately served as clinical lead of their GLP-1 Receptor Agonist portfolio, helping to secure multiple approvals of Byetta® and Bydureon® for the treatment of T2DM, globally.
Dr. MacConell has a Ph.D. in neuroendocrinology from the University of California, San Diego and completed her post-doctoral training at the Salk Institute.
Filip Surmont, M.D.
Chief Medical Officer
Dr. Filip Surmont brings over 30 years of extensive experience in healthcare and pharmaceutical industries, including 18 years in leadership positions at multinational pharmaceutical companies and 16 years of clinical practice. A globally recognized leader in the field of cardiovascular, metabolic, and renal diseases, he previously held senior medical leadership positions at Wyeth, Pfizer, and AstraZeneca. He has led medical affairs across diverse regions—including emerging markets, Latin America, Europe, the U.S., and China—successfully building high-performance teams and driving large-scale, guideline-level clinical practice transformations within complex global healthcare systems.
Dr. Filip Surmont has contributed to the success of dapagliflozin as a blockbuster medication; led the "ACT on HF" project in China, enabling 200,000 heart failure patients to benefit from guideline-recommended standard of care; pioneered the Anti-Inflammatory Reliever (AIR) therapy strategy for asthma, impacting approximately 50 million patients worldwide and driving updates to international treatment guidelines. As a distinguished scientist, Dr. Surmont has authored numerous peer-reviewed articles in elite medical journals, including The Lancet Diabetes, Endocrinology and Journal of the American College of Cardiology. In his early professional career, Dr. Filip Surmontprovided medical services for Olympic-level athletes.
Dr. Filip Surmont holds an M.D. and a Master’s degree in Sports Medicine from Ghent University, Belgium.
Meng Yu, MSc
Chief Operating Officer
Ms. Meng Yu has over 15 years of experience in business strategy management, corporate research and development, and R&D operations management. She is familiar with all essential stages of drug research and development. Prior to joining HighTide, Ms. Yu served as a scientific liaison manager of Huya Biological Medicine Technology Co., Ltd., where she was responsible for operations management, compound sourcing/project evaluation, and business development. Previously she was a researcher at Asymchem Laboratories Co., Ltd.
Ms. Yu received her bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of Science and Technology of China, and Master of Science degree in organic chemistry from the University of Nevada, Reno.
Dong Han, PhD
Head of Business Development
Dr. Dong Han leads business development, alliance management, and launch readiness for new products at HighTide. With over 20 years of experience in pharmaceutical research and business operations, he brings a wealth of expertise to his role.
Before joining HighTide, Dr. Han served as Senior Director of Business Development at Neurophth Therapeutics, where he oversaw global out-licensing and product launch readiness. His career includes roles at leading multinational corporations such as Merck Serono, Bayer, Novartis, GSK, and Sinotrust Consulting. Dr. Han’s experience spans drug discovery, market research, market access, corporate strategy, and new product commercialization.
Dr. Han earned a Bachelor of Pharmacy and a Ph.D. in Chemical Biology from Peking University.
Nadia Gao, MBA
Company Secretary
Ms. Nadia Gao brings over 15 years of expertise in capital markets and the healthcare sector to her role as Company Secretary at HighTide. She oversees corporate governance and information disclosure, providing strategic guidance to the board in managing the company. Additionally, Ms. Gao plays a pivotal role in managing investor relations and public communications.
Before joining HighTide, Ms. Gao led investor relations at Harbour BioMed (2142.HK). Her career spans more than a decade in equity investment and fund management with organizations such as Founder Securities, Fosun Group, and Prax Capital.
Ms. Gao holds a bachelor's degree in International Relations from Peking University and an MBA from the University of Aberdeen, UK.
Advisors
Adrian Di Bisceglie
- Dr. Di Bisceglie, a hepatologist with 30+ years of experience in international clinical trials, is board-certified in internal medicine, gastroenterology and transplant hepatology.
- Former president (2014) and governing board member (2010-2015) of the American Association for the Study of Liver Disease (AASLD).
- He has also served as advisor and committee member with the US FDA, CDC, and NIH.
- Dr. Di Bisceglie is an emeritus Professor of Internal Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at Saint Louis University.
Gwen Melincoff
- Ms. Melincoff has over 25 years of leadership experience in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries.
- Her experience has spanned public and private company boards, venture financing, business development, licensing, mergers and acquisitions, research operations, marketing, and product management.
- Ms. Melincoff previously served as Senior VP of Business Development at Shire Pharmaceuticals. She also served as board member of Tobira Therapeutics when it was acquired by Allergan.
Edward Saltzman
- Mr. Saltzman is a senior strategic advisor with extensive expertise in the biopharma sector.
- He founded Defined Health, a leading strategy advisory firm focused on emerging biotech, and served as Executive Chairman of Cello Health's biotech business unit after its acquisition of Defined Health in 2017.
- Mr. Saltzman is a recognized speaker on industry trends, particularly in licensing and business development, and has provided strategic briefings to numerous executive teams and boards.