Peter Emtage Ph.D.

Peter Emtage, Ph.D. is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Santa Ana Bio, Inc., a precision immunology company developing targeted therapies for patients with autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.12

Professional Background

Dr. Emtage has over 25 years of drug development experience, specializing in the fields of oncology, autoimmunity, infectious diseases, and inflammation.1 His career highlights include:

• Global Head of Cell Therapy Research at Kite Pharma, a Gilead company
• Chief Scientific Officer at Cell Design Labs Inc. (CDL), which was acquired by Gilead
• Vice President of Immune Mediated Therapy in the Oncology Innovative Medicines group at MedImmune

Education

• B.S. and M.S. in Molecular Biology and Genetics from the University of Guelph
• Ph.D. in Molecular Virology, Immunology and Inflammation from McMaster University
• Post-doctoral fellowship at the National Cancer Institute

Current Roles

In addition to his position at Santa Ana Bio, Dr. Emtage also serves as a Venture Partner with Versant Ventures.1

Santa Ana Bio

Under Dr. Emtage's leadership, Santa Ana Bio emerged from stealth in June 2024 with $168 million in funding.2 The company has developed three preclinical programs for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, all of which are poised to enter clinical trials in 2025.3 Santa Ana Bio's approach focuses on precision immunology therapies that target causal cells, aiming to provide significant improvements over existing treatments.2

Dr. Emtage's expertise in immunology and his ability to assemble a distinguished team of scientific leaders have been noted as key factors in the company's rapid progress and promising preclinical data.2