Avistron - Management Team

Peter D. Kane BSc PhD FRSC CChem CSci

Peter is an experienced medicinal chemist and research manager with a proven track record in drug discovery, synthetic organic chemistry and project management. Peter has benefited from operating on both sides of the business: 14 years working in drug discovery research for Ciba Pharmaceuticals and subsequently Novartis, sandwiched between two spells in the service industry: 8 years with Amersham biosciences, and most recently 8.5 years with Tripos Discovery Research based in Cornwall.

At Tripos Peter held the position of Senior Director and Head of Research Operations, controlling research strategy, responsible for the day to day operations of 40 scientists with an associated annual budget exceeding £1 million pa. In this position Peter was a member of the senior management team and involved in deciding company business operations and strategy.

While at Tripos Peter was routinely engaged in project discussions and negotiations with a wide range of customers from the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector, across a range of target and disease areas. A number of large multi-million $ projects with various pharmaceutical companies were also personally managed and during the successfully completed $90 million project for Pfizer, Peter directed all research activities.

Prior to life at Tripos Peter held senior scientific and management positions at Ciba Pharmaceuticals, and following the merger of Ciba with Sandoz to form Novartis, headed up combinatorial and parallel chemistry at the UK site. During this time Peter also successfully managed various large multi-disciplinary projects, while directing a group of medicinal chemists, leading to a number of pharmaceutical development candidates.

Educated at the University of Reading and Imperial College of Science & Technology in London, Peter has more than 30 scientific publications and patents and has attended and presented at various international scientific meetings.


Julia A. H. Foster BSc PhD ARCS DIC MRSC CChem CSci

Julia gained her BSc and PhD in Organic Chemistry from Imperial College of Science & Technology in London and followed this by post-doctoral studies in the USA where she began to gain her medicinal chemistry experience.

She entered the industrial sector gaining 15 years’ experience in medicinal chemistry at Parke Davis Neuroscience Research Centre, Napp Pharmaceuticals Ltd and Tripos Discovery Research Ltd where she rose through the ranks to hold most recently the position of Head of Chemistry.

Julia brings to Avistron the invaluable experience which she gained in a high–pressure contract research environment in the project management of medicinal chemistry projects covering a wide range of biological targets for both pharmaceutical and biotech clients in an international forum.

Julia is the author of more than 20 patents and publications and has attended and presented at various international scientific meetings.



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