The driving force
behind our vision
the team
We believe that a strong and motivated team is the key to success, and our team of highly skilled and passionate professionals is exactly that.
Each member of our team brings a unique experience and specific expertise, which together form a synergistic force. Our collective knowledge and experience enable us to deliver results that exceed expectations.
At our core, we are a group of individuals with a common goal of excellence. We believe in collaboration, communication, and a shared sense of purpose, which allows us to achieve remarkable milestones together.
Stefan Lohmer
Co-Founder and Chairman of the Board
Stefan Lohmer, seasoned CEO in the biotech world with a strong passion for transformative science and creating companies.
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Stefan Lohmer is a co-founder and Chairman of the Board of Golgi Neurosciences. Stefan is also co-founder of Axxam where he served as Chief Executive Officer from 2001 to December 2024. Prior to founding Axxam, he was the Director of Bayer’s Research Centre in Milan (Italy) and the Head of Genomics worldwide for Bayer AG. In this function Stefan was responsible for generating and managing Bayer’s external genomic alliance with Millennium Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, USA). He joined Bayer at the corporate research center located at Wuppertal (Germany) in 1992. Stefan holds a degree in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry from the Albertus Magnus University in Cologne (Germany) and completed his PhD at the Max-Planck-Institute for Plant Breeding in Cologne. He is an inventor on more than 20 patents and has authored more than 20 peer-reviewed publications.
Stefan serves in the Board of Directors of Axxam, Rewind Therapeutics, Libra Therapeutics, and Golgi Neurosciences as well being an Observer in the Board of Acousia Therapeutics.
Stefan is passionate about transformative science and creating companies.
“Never follow the path, always set the trail!”
OTHER THINGS WORTH KNOWING ABOUT ME:
My favourite books are “Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies” by Jared Diamond and “The Big Five for Life: Leadership’s Greatest Secrets” by John Strelecky
My favorite places to visit on earth is “Capri Island including Amalfi Coast” (Italy) and Pompei (Italy). My free time is dedicated to study History and reading books.
Alessandro Sidoli
Co-Founder and Member of the Board
Alessandro Sidoli, experienced founder and CEO of innovative biotech companies and associations.
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Alessandro Sidoli is co-founder and Member of the Board of Golgi Neurosciences. He has been co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Axxam (2001-2023). He has been President of Assobiotec/Federchimica, the Italian association of the biotech industry (2010-2016). He started his career as a Research Scientist at the Biotechnology Department of Farmitalia Carlo Erba in Milan, and later he was also a researcher at the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at Oxford University (UK). Afterwards he served as Head of the Biotechnology Department at the Istituto Sieroterapico Milanese (Milan). He also founded Primm, one of the first Italian biotech companies, and was also Director of Technology Transfer at San Raffaele in Milan. Alessandro Sidoli received his degree in Biology from the University of Pavia where he conducted his studies as a member of the Ghislieri College.
Luigi Gavazzeni
CFO, Co-Founder and Member of the Board
Luigi Gavazzeni, a long-standing expertise as CFO in the biopharmaceutical industry.
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Luigi Gavazzeni is Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Co-Founder and Member of the Board of Golgi Neurosciences. Luigi has been CFO of Axxam from 2005 till December 2025. Prior to Axxam, he held Finance Director positions at BioXell SpA and Novuspharma SpA. He has successfully managed several strategic and corporate development projects for a number of companies in the biopharmaceutical industry. He has extensive experience in project management and a broad knowledge of finance, accounting and tax principles, regulations and financial control. Luigi received his Degree in Engineering from the Polytechnic in Milan.
Giorgio Chirivì
Member of the Board
Giorgio Chirivì, an outstanding expert in corporate finance, in conducting very successful M&As and being board member in various pharma and life science companies.
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Giorgio has sat on Axxam’s board since the company’s inception. He works for IMI Corporate & Investment Banking – Intesa San Paolo. Previously, he worked for UBI Banca (formerly Centrobanca), one of the major Italian banking groups, engaged in mergers and acquisitions. He also served as the head of the corporate finance division for Arca BIM and was responsible for the mergers and acquisitions activities of the Credit Merchant Affairs Bank of the Credito Italiano Group.
Chiara Liberati
Managing Director
Chiara Liberati, seasoned director with a deep commitment to science and experience in early drug discovery and company creation.
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Chiara Liberati has more than 25 years-experience in early drug discovery and preclinical research. Prior to Golgi Neurosciences, she was Director of Discovery Research at Axxam where she started in 2001, covering different roles with increasing responsibility. At Axxam, Chiara was responsible for managing the proprietary discovery projects. During her career, she coordinated as Program Director a wide range of multidisciplinary programs, in collaboration with pharmaceutical companies and international research institutes, being also the Principal Investigator of national and European grants. She was also actively involved at different levels in the ex- novo creation or asset transfer and fund raising for the portfolio companies. Chiara serves in the Board of Directors of Lario Therapeutics and Breye Therapeutics as well being an observer in Muna Therapeutics and Rewind Therapeutics. Before Axxam, she worked at Bayer Pharma Italia and Biosearch SpA. Following the Master’s Degree in Molecular and Cellular Biology, Chiara attended a Postgraduate School in Human Molecular Genetics at University of Milan by working on human globin genes regulation. She is inventor on 10 patents and author and co-author of 14 publications.
OTHER THINGS WORTH KNOWING ABOUT ME
Life on our planet was born in the oceans: I like going back to these origins where I feel completely at home. Water is my element. I love snorkeling and observing the amazing-colored living organisms under the sea. A good dinner with excellent food, wine and loved ones makes me happy. Travelling and knowing new cultures and countries is also on the top of my wish list. My motto is live and let live!
Elisa Tinelli
Senior Program Manager
Elisa Tinelli, extensive experience in full life-cycle management of drug discovery programs within interdisciplinary and international settings.
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Elisa has 20+ years of experience in preclinical research and drug discovery in neurodegenerative and rare diseases with a patient-centric approach. Prior to joining Golgi Neurosciences, she was Principal Investigator in the Discovery Research department at Axxam, where she coordinated cross-functional teams working in drug discovery programs, in partnership with other biotech companies and/or international research institutes and universities. Elisa has extensive experience in full life-cycle management of collaborative drug discovery research programs within interdisciplinary and international settings, including identification, coordination and managing alliances and external communication. Collaboration with academic and private partners including charities and family associations and 3 years’ experience as risk manager in a scientific/medical international setting. Elisa has authored and co-authored 11 publications. Elisa holds a Master’ Degree in Pharmaceutical Biotechnology from the “Università Statale di Milano” (Italy) and a joint PhD in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the San Raffaele University (Italy) and the Open University (UK). She matured a solid academic experience in translational project in scientific excellence institutes as: San Raffaele Scientific Institute (Milan-Italy), ETH (Zurich-Switzerland) and UCL (London-United Kingdom).
OTHER THINGS WORTH KNOWING ABOUT ME:
My favourite book is “Sophie’s World” by Jostnein Gaarder. My favourite city is London. My free time is dedicated to playing the piano. My Motto is “Focus on goals and not on obstacles”
Lorena Za
Senior Program Manager
Lorena Za, expert in designing, starting and managing interdisciplinary early drug discovery programs.
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Lorena has more than 20 years of experience in academic research and early drug discovery in neurosciences and other therapeutic areas. Prior to joining Golgi Neurosciences, she was Principal Investigator in the Discovery Research department at Axxam, where she coordinated small-molecule drug discovery programs, managing cross-functional and multidisciplinary teams in partnership with other biotech companies and/or international research institutes and universities. With a solid academic background in basic research, during her career at Axxam Lorena gained a deep understanding of the different phases of the drug discovery process, from target evaluation to functional assays development, HTS and Hit Validation/Hit-to-Lead/Lead Optimization. Before joining Axxam, Lorena spent 5 years at the San Raffaele Scientific Institute (Milan, Italy) working in the neuroscience field. She is author and co-author of 10 publications, she holds a PhD in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the San Raffaele University (Italy) and the Open University (UK) and a Master’s Degree in Pharmaceutical Biotechnology from the University of Milan (Italy).
OTHER THINGS WORTH KNOWING ABOUT ME:
My favorite books are biographies. I love the Italian seaside. I like art and spending my free time traveling with my family. My motto is “Be the change you wish to see in the world”.
Paola Tarroni
Scientific Innovation Manager
Paola Tarroni, seasoned expert in early drug discovery with over 25 years of experience in the pharma and biotech industry.
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Paola brings over 25 years of expertise in early drug discovery, gained through her extensive experience in the pharma and biotech industries. She was Scientific Innovation Manager at Axxam from 2001, where she shaped the company’s innovation strategy, managed cross-functional projects, and played a key role in securing public and private grants for research and innovation. She also coordinated international multidisciplinary projects. Earlier, as a researcher at Axxam, Paola led the Target Biology group, specializing in drug target identification and assessment. Before Axxam, she was a senior researcher at Bayer Research Centre in Milan and Pharmacia & Upjohn’s Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory in Nerviano. Paola’s expertise in molecular biology and pharmacology was built over nearly a decade in academic research at renowned institutions, including the CNR Centre of Cytopharmacology, University of Milan (Italy); ZMBH, Heidelberg (Germany); and DIBIT, San Raffaele Research Institute, Milan (Italy). She holds a degree in Biological Sciences and a Master’s in Biotechnology from the University of Milan and has authored 21 peer-reviewed publications.
OTHER THINGS WORTH KNOWING ABOUT ME:
I like to spend good time with loved ones walking in the mountains and when possible visiting Italy and countries around the world. I like photography, when it takes me to understand better the world around and meet people. I like a lot to relax growing flowers and plants on my balcony.
ilaria prada
Program Manager
Ilaria Prada is an expert in cell-based assay development and early drug discovery, with a deep background in cellular neurobiology and extracellular vesicles.
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Ilaria is a neuroscientist and drug discovery professional with more than 20 years of experience in cellular neurobiology, extracellular vesicle research, and cell-based assay development for therapeutic discovery. Her career spans academic research and industrial drug discovery, with a focus on neurodegenerative and neurological diseases.
Prior to joining Golgi Neurosciences, she served as Cell Biology Unit Manager at Axxam, where she coordinated cross-functional projects, interacted with international clients and stakeholders, and contributed to programs supporting therapeutic development.
Ilaria developed her academic research experience on glial biology, with a particular focus on astrocytes and microglia in neurodegeneration and neuroinflammation, at leading research centres, including the San Raffaele Scientific Institute (Milan, Italy), the Department of Fundamental Neurosciences (DNF) – UNIL (Lausanne, Switzerland), the Neuroscience Institute of the Italian National Research Council (CNR) (Milan, Italy), and Sahlgrenska University (Gothenburg, Sweden).
Ilaria has authored and co-authored 20 scientific publications. She holds a Master’s degree in Pharmaceutical Biotechnology from the Università Statale di Milano (Italy) and a PhD in Molecular Medicine in Neuroscience from San Raffaele University (Italy).
OTHER THINGS WORTH KNOWING ABOUT ME:
I enjoy hiking in the mountains with my family and breathing in the scent of the woods. I love traveling and have lived and worked in several countries, experiences that have shaped my open-minded approach to life. I relax by taking care of the plants on my balcony, and I recharge by singing in a choir, where I practice listening, blending with others, and contributing my voice to the harmony of the group.
