TEAM

Built by pioneers
in precision
regeneration

Spectrum was founded by the hepatology research group whose work over more than a decade defined the biology behind our regenerative programs, joined by executives with deep experience in venture capital, operations, company building and drug development. The company was built by Securitas Biosciences, a venture studio dedicated to translating breakthrough research into successful biotech companies.

Meet the team

Leadership

Guillermo Mazzolini, MD, PhD

Founder and CSO

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Juan Bayo, PhD

Scientific co-founder

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Esteban Fiore, PhD

Scientific co-founder

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Maximiliano Kunze-Küllmer, MEng

CEO

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Victoria Sundblad, PhD

OPERATIONS

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Matías Vidal

Executive Director

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Nicolás Kitashima

FINANCE

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Federico Asis

LEGAL COUNSEL

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Daniela Küllmer

Investor Relations & Communications

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Scientific Advisors

Matías A. Ávila, PhD

SCIENTIFIC ADVISOR

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Jimmy El Hokayem, MD, PhD

SCIENTIFIC ADVISOR

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Ali Canbay, MD, PhD

SCIENTIFIC ADVISOR

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Our edge isn't a molecule. It's the people who found it.

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Guillermo Mazzolini

Founder and CSO of Spectrum Regenerative.

MD, PhD

Dr. Guillermo Mazzolini Rizzo is the founding scientist behind the research program that became Spectrum and one of Latin America's leading hepatology researchers, with 25+ years bridging the lab and the clinic. He is the senior author of two Phase I clinical trials published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology that pioneered intratumoral delivery of IL-12 gene therapy in patients with gastrointestinal cancer, work he conducted during his training at the Universidad de Navarra in Spain through the EMA regulatory route.

As Scientific Co-Founder of Spectrum, Dean of the Faculty of Biomedical Sciences at Universidad Austral, and Senior Investigator at CONICET, the highest tier of Argentina's national scientific career, he has built a research program that has produced 130+ peer-reviewed publications, over 9,500 citations, and a portfolio of liver disease patents, including those underlying Spectrum's pipeline. In 2005, he founded the Gene Therapy Laboratory at Universidad Austral, which grew into the Experimental Hepatology and Gene Therapy Program, with active collaborations across institutions including the Universidad de Navarra, UT Southwestern Medical Center, the University of North Carolina, the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, and University Hospital Essen.

Trained as an internist in Argentina, he moved to Spain to specialize in hepatology and earn his PhD at the Universidad de Navarra. He returned to Argentina to investigate the pathophysiology of the most severe acute and chronic liver diseases and discover novel therapeutic strategies, with research focused on fulminant hepatitis, cirrhosis, and hepatic and gastrointestinal tumors. He sits on the board of the Institute for Research in Translational Medicine (IIMT), and his scientific leadership has trained a generation of Latin American hepatology researchers now working across academia and industry.

Juan Bayo

Operations of Spectrum Regenerative.

PhD

Dr. Juan Bayo Fina is a translational scientist and Scientific Co-Founder of Spectrum, whose research has generated the company's first two drug programs and continues to feed its expanding pipeline. During his postdoctoral work in the lab of Dr. Elisabeth Martinez at UT Southwestern Medical Center, he identified an epigenetic inhibitor, originally studied for radioresistance in cancer, as a candidate for driving liver regeneration. That hypothesis became the scientific foundation of Spectrum's HZ02 program. Alongside co-founders Dr. Mazzolini and Dr. Fiore, he is also a co-inventor on the international PCT patent that establishes class-level protection for RAC1 inhibition in the treatment of liver failure, the platform underlying Spectrum's HZ04 program.

He earned his PhD under Dr. Mazzolini, then trained as a postdoctoral researcher in Dallas, focusing on epigenetic mechanisms of chemo- and radio-resistance in cancer. He holds the rank of Independent Investigator at CONICET, a tier reserved for scientists with a sustained record of original contributions, and was appointed Associate Professor at the Universidad Austral Faculty of Biomedical Sciences. He has authored 40+ peer-reviewed publications with an h-index of 22, including first or senior authorship in Gut and the Journal of Hepatology, the two most influential journals in hepatology, as well as in Nature Communications, PNAS, and Cell Reports.

Beyond the RAC1 platform, he is co-inventor on additional international patent applications spanning regenerative medicine, mesenchymal stromal cell targeting, and epigenetic therapeutic strategies. His research integrates translational experimental models, molecular biology, and transcriptomic approaches to study inflammatory liver injury, liver regeneration, tumor progression, and resistance to immunotherapy.

Esteban Fiore

Scientific Co-Founder of Spectrum Regenerative.

PhD

Dr. Esteban J. Fiore is a translational scientist and Scientific Co-Founder of Spectrum, leading the company's preclinical and in vivo validation strategy. He is a co-inventor of the international PCT patent that establishes class-level protection for RAC1 inhibition in the treatment of liver failure, alongside co-founders Dr. Mazzolini and Dr. Bayo, and co-first author of the Gut publication that introduced RAC1 as a therapeutic target in hepatology. He developed proprietary mouse models of hepatocellular carcinoma and acute liver failure that serve as key platforms for testing Spectrum's pipeline, with the HCC model attracting interest from biopharmaceutical companies.

He earned his Bachelor's in Biotechnology from the Universidad Nacional del Litoral and his PhD in Biomedical Sciences at Universidad Austral under Dr. Mazzolini, with international research stays at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto and the Cell Therapy Facility at Clínica Universidad de Navarra in Spain. He holds the rank of Adjunct Investigator at CONICET, and was appointed Professor in the MD program at the Universidad Austral Faculty of Biomedical Sciences. He has authored 30+ peer-reviewed publications with an h-index of 21, including first, senior, or corresponding authorship in Gut and the Journal of Hepatology, the two most influential journals in hepatology.

Beyond the RAC1 platform, he is co-inventor on additional international patent applications spanning regenerative medicine and cell therapy approaches for severe liver disease. His preclinical work has validated the efficacy and safety of Spectrum's pipeline across multiple animal models of acute liver failure and in human ex vivo liver tissue, providing the experimental foundation for the company's clinical development plan. He has been recognized with multiple awards from Argentine scientific societies, including the Léon Cherny Award for best postdoctoral researcher from the Argentine Society of Clinical Investigation.

Maximiliano Kunze-Küllmer

CEO of Spectrum Regenerative.

MEng

Maximiliano Kunze-Küllmer is CEO of Spectrum Regenerative and one of few biotech operators who has worked both sides of the industry, as a founder and as an investor. Early in his career, he built his foundation in cell and gene therapy, leading international expansion and the first US spinout of a Latin American biotech. From there, he crossed to venture capital as a Venture Partner at VU Venture Partners, a San Francisco-based fund where he ran end-to-end due diligence on biotech and deeptech deals, including SpaceX, Neuralink, and Figure AI. He led Spectrum's Seed round and now leads the company with that combined operator-investor lens, structuring it to meet the same standards he once applied to others.

Across his career, Max has raised or helped raise $20M+ for early-stage biotech ventures and research institutes across Latin America and the United States, led spinouts and US incorporations, and structured partnerships with global pharmaceutical companies. He holds a BSc in Biomedical Engineering from Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and an MEng in Biomedical Engineering from Duke University, where he was the first Chilean to earn a graduate degree in the field.

He was awarded the Early Stage Professional Leadership Development Award by the International Society for Cell & Gene Therapy (ISCT), one of the field's most competitive recognitions for emerging leaders, and served as the youngest member of its Business Development Committee. During his fellowship at the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine (ARM), the leading global advocacy organization for advanced therapies, he co-authored the first international bioethical framework on gene editing. He has been invited to serve as a biotechnology mentor at Start-Up Chile, the world's top-ranked public accelerator, and sits on the Programs Committee of Latinos in Bio, the leading professional network for Latinos in the life sciences industry.

Victoria Sundblad

Operations of Spectrum Regenerative.

PhD

Dr. Victoria Sundblad brings to the role 20+ years as a senior researcher at CONICET, where she trained at IBYME, one of Latin America's most internationally recognized immunology programs, building her career in galectin biology and its role in cancer, autoimmunity, and inflammation.

At Spectrum, Victoria leads the operational backbone of the company's preclinical execution: coordinating the scientific team's work against regulatory milestones and value-generation inflection points, managing CDMO and CRO partnerships, overseeing intellectual property and licensing strategy, structuring academic collaborations, and leading the company's investor-facing materials and data room. She also holds the role of Director of Scientific Innovation at Universidad Austral, where she identifies high-potential technologies for spinout, a position that gives her direct insight into the institutional ecosystem in which Spectrum operates.

Dr. Sundblad holds a PhD in Biological Sciences, with research published across leading immunology and glycobiology journals including Cancer Research, Journal of Immunology, and Frontiers in Immunology, and her work has been cited in field-defining reviews including Nature Reviews Drug Discovery. She co-founded synapsIA, a Latin American network of artificial intelligence experts connecting researchers, entrepreneurs, corporations, and investors across the region, and actively participates in venture building and investment decisions for early-stage health and life-sciences companies. Victoria also holds additional training in venture capital from the VCLab Institute.

Matías Vidal

Executive Director of Spectrum Regenerative.
Matías Vidal is an accomplished Senior Executive, Entrepreneur and Board Member with more than 30 years of experience across several industries and sectors. During the last 15 years, his focus has been in the biotechnology and venture capital sector, with previous extensive experience in the financial services, healthcare, logistics, telecom, and utility industries. Leveraging extensive global experience with turnaround, change management, and growth strategy, Matias is a valuable asset for companies seeking guidance on negotiations, mergers and acquisitions. His broad areas of expertise include investing in start-ups, alternative assets, strategy, valuation, partnering, debt restructuring, M&A, team building, growth, international and Latin American markets.

Throughout his executive career, Matias has held leadership positions with Coopers & Lybrand, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein; Deutsche Bank; Rio Bravo Investimentos and Finvest Capital Partners. In his current role as Co-Founder and CEO at Securitas Biosciences Group (SBG), a Venture Studio focused on Life Sciences, he has been responsible for funding, organization, negotiation and formation of all strategic partnerships; developing and implementing strategy and vision as well as attracting key human resources.

He currently manages the fund portfolio through its new growth phase. At this time, he serves as Chairman or Executive Chairman in several SBG portfolio companies, including VirTech Bio, TheraVax (including its sister vaccine company, Vaxinz) and Spectrum. He also serves as Managing Partner of Securitas BioHoldings, based in Brazil, focused on the venture capital market. Matías has held Senior Executive positions based in São Paulo, Buenos Aires and Santiago in Latin America. He was based in London and New York during his consultancy and investment banking career and has worked extensively in Asia Pacific, Europe, and Latin America. Matias holds a BSc in Economics from Argentine Catholic University and is fluent in English, Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese.

Nicolás Kitashima

Head of Finance of Spectrum Regenerative.
Nicolás Kitashima is Head of Finance & Administration at Spectrum, where he runs the company's financial operations end to end, from accounting and banking to financial reporting, runway management, and cross-border US-Argentine tax and compliance. He brings to the role over fifteen years of operational experience at the intersection of biosciences, healthcare, and applied technology, much of it within the Universidad Austral ecosystem that produced Spectrum's founding science.

His career has been spent running the operational and administrative backbone of complex life-sciences initiatives. From 2017 through early 2025, he was part of Universidad Austral's Technology Transfer Office, where he supported the operations of the Institute of Artificial Intelligence and Data Science and helped structure collaborations between academia, the pharmaceutical industry, and the healthcare system.

He served as Technical and Legal Lead of the PAMPA Precision Medicine Program, a pioneering applied genomics initiative developed jointly by Universidad Austral, IIMT-CONICET, and Argenomics S.A., where he managed the operational and contractual framework across the three institutions. During the 2020 pandemic, he coordinated operations for Hospital Solidario COVID Austral, a multi-institution high-complexity healthcare center built in response to the health emergency. He holds a degree in Business Administration from the Universidad de Buenos Aires and a Master's in Data Science, Data Mining, and Knowledge Management from Universidad Austral. He is also Adjunct Professor of Project Management for Biomedical Engineering at the Universidad Austral School of Engineering.

Federico Asis

Legal Counsel of Spectrum Regenerative.
Federico Asis is the Legal Counsel at Spectrum Regenerative, with a career that combines the rigor of top-tier law firms with the pace of the startup and biosciences world. He began his career at leading law firms including Marval O'Farrell Mairal, Argentina's largest law firm and one of Latin America's leading firms, where he built a strong foundation in negotiation, contracts, and legal structuring. He then pivoted toward the startup and biosciences world, serving as in-house counsel at Securitas Biosciences Group, the life-sciences venture studio that founded Spectrum, adding along the way deep expertise in biotech, new technologies, and artificial intelligence, with a strong interest in frontier industries and innovation.


At Spectrum, Federico leads the legal function with a focus on what matters most for an early-stage biotech: corporate structure, capital raising, pharma industry partnerships, intellectual property, and building the legal architecture that gives investors confidence. He holds a law degree from the Universidad de Buenos Aires.

Daniela Küllmer

Investor Relations & Communications Manager
Daniela Küllmer is Investor Relations & Communications Manager at Spectrum Regenerative, where she brings a rare cross-functional breadth, spanning brand and communications, marketing, finance, investment, and legal and compliance affairs.

Daniela holds degrees in both Advertising and Business Administration, a pairing that bridges commercial strategy and financial management. She built her early career at DDB Chile, a leading advertising and communications agency, and at CCU, one of Chile's largest beverage companies, leading national brand strategy, budget management, and licensing. She then advanced at Falabella Retail from arketing Product Manager to head of a marketplace category, owning commercial strategy, e-commerce, and partnerships.

She has also worked within the family-office sector, where her focus on investment and oversight included evaluating and executing private equity and real-asset investments across operating businesses, real estate, agriculture, forestry, and energy, along with regulatory compliance and accounting and tax oversight.

Daniela is an active member of AEF, the Chilean Association of Family Offices and Family-owned Businesses, where she has served as a panelist at its annual meetings and contributes to its Family Office and Women communities, giving Spectrum direct ties to LatAm's family-office investor network.