Executive Team
Massimiliano Paganelli, MD, PhD​
Co-Founder, President and Chief Executive Officer
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Max is a pediatric transplant hepatologist, head of the Liver Tissue Engineering and Cell Therapy Laboratory at CHU Sainte-Justine and associate professor of pediatrics at the Université de Montréal. He earned his medical degree at the Sapienza University of Rome, and trained in pediatrics in Rome and in pediatric hepatology and transplantology in Naples and in Brussels. Max also has a Ph.D. in hepatology and cell therapy from the Catholic University of Louvain. Expert in cell therapy of liver diseases, he is a Stem Cell Network investigator and a CIHR/FRQS-funded scientist. Driven by the needs of his young patients, Max is seeking better ways to treat liver disease using novel stem cell therapies. Max has been leading Morphocell as president and CEO since 2019.
Claudia Raggi, MD
Co-Founder, Chief Scientific Officer
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Claudia is an expert in human development and stem cell differentiation. Educated in medicine at the University of Rome La Sapienza and at the Catholic University of Louvain, Claudia has been a full-time basis and translational scientist since 2009. Inventor of Morphocell's iPSC-based platform technology, with unique expertise in preclinical development of cell therapy products and cell manufacturing, Claudia built and leads the Company's passionate team of engineers and scientists that is bringing its engineered tissues to the clinic.
Vincent Ling, PhD
Chief Business Officer
Vincent is a world-class leader with thirty years of experience in biotech and pharma innovation. Based in the Boston and Cambridge area, he has a rare and extensive scientific and business development background at the frontier of cell therapy, biologics, genetic engineering, novel biomaterials and cellular bio-delivery systems. He held leadership and executive positions in leading biotechnology companies, including Genetics Institute (now Wyeth), Adnexus Therapeutics and Neurotech Pharmaceuticals. Vincent joins Morphocell after 12 years at Takeda Pharmaceuticals, where he was in charge of identifying, financing and developing early-stage pipelines across therapeutic areas and billion-dollar franchises. Among many successful projects, he identified and supported the Kariko-Weissman mRNA vaccine technology from University of Pennsylvania, which subsequently evolved into the first COVID mRNA vaccine and resulted in the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine. Over the years, he focused on several therapeutic indications, including liver diseases, always keeping the patient at the center of any strategic decisions. Vincent is also an advisor for the Gates Foundation and several academic and non-profit institutions, and a prolific communicator on scientific, biotech and pharma affairs. He holds degrees from U.C. Berkeley (BA), University of Illinois (MS, Ph.D.), and post-doctoral work at Harvard University.
Calley Hirsch, PhD
Vice President Preclinical Development
Holding 18+ years of international experience, Calley is a specialist in cell and gene therapy development with a Ph.D. and Postdoctoral training in cellular reprogramming and stem cell biology. Built on this foundation, she has advanced numerous stem cell-derived and primary cell therapies to the clinic during her appointments at CCRM, BlueRock Therapeutics, and Artisan Bio. Calley has cemented herself as an expert in the translation of cell therapy product concepts to clinical products, having built and led world-class process development and translation sciences programs and teams. Driven by her learnings and passion for innovation, Calley is highly committed to developing next generation products and strategies that address unmet clinical need and streamline product access to the clinic and beyond.
Patrick Bedford, BHSc, MBHL, RAC
Vice President Regulatory Affairs
Patrick is a regulatory expert with 18+ years of cell & gene therapy clinical translation experience. He holds a Health Sciences degree from the University of Western Ontario, a Master’s of Bioethics and Health Law from Otago University, and an MBA from the Jack Welch Management Institute. Patrick previously led Health Canada’s regulatory initiatives for biosimilars, transplant materials, and cell & gene therapies, and has continued to be actively involved in North American policy development while supporting dozens of cell & gene therapy companies at the preclinical, clinical, and commercial stages of development. An active contributor to the cell & gene therapy ecosystem, Patrick is well known for lecturing at multiple Universities, mentoring many early-stage companies, and regularly supporting Canada’s cell & gene therapy ecosystem. Patrick lead’s the Company’s strategies for efficiently navigating regulatory requirements throughout development.
Janahan Arulmoli, PhD
Vice President Product Engineering
Janahan is an expert in cell encapsulation technologies with a focus on implantable medical devices, drug delivery systems, and combination product development supporting cell and organ replacement therapies. Prior to joining Morphocell, he held leadership roles at Vertex Pharmaceuticals and ViaCyte, Inc., where he led development and scale-up of encapsulation platforms for Type 1 diabetes, and built next-generation device R&D, process development, and surgical delivery teams to support clinical translation. His expertise spans device engineering, biomaterials, and translational medicine, with contributions to multiple first-in-human programs and global clinical trials. Janahan’s work centers on integrating biological insight with engineering strategy to guide technical execution, regulatory alignment, and clinical readiness that position emerging therapies for long-term clinical success. He holds degrees from U.C. San Diego (BS in Chemical Engineering) and U.C. Irvine (MS and PhD in Biomedical Engineering), where he founded and continues to serve on the university’s Industry Advisory Board.