Chris Starr

Chris has extensive experience in developing and commercializing biologic and small molecule therapeutics in the orphan genetic disease space through six drug approvals and multiple commercial launches. He was cofounder and Chief Executive Officer of Raptor Pharmaceuticals Corp. since its inception in 2006 until 2015. As Chief Executive Officer, Chris built Raptor from a startup to a 130 person Nasdaq-listed company with one approved product and two Phase 2 programs. Raptor was acquired by Horizon Pharma in 2016 for $800 million. Prior to starting Raptor, he cofounded BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. in 1997 where he last served as Senior Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer until 2006. At BioMarin, he was responsible for managing a scientific operations team of 181 research, process development, manufacturing, and quality personnel through the successful development of commercial manufacturing processes for its enzyme replacement products and supervised the cGMP design, construction, and licensing of BioMarin’s proprietary biological manufacturing facility. Chris was recipient of a National Research Council Associate Award while a postdoc at the National Institutes of Health. He earned a B.S. from Syracuse University and a Ph.D. in biochemistry and molecular biology from the State University of New York Health Science Center.