Management Team

Dr. Douglas Rees BSc (Hons) PhD MRSNZ, Founder, Director and Chief Scientific Officer

Douglas became an Elected Member of the New York Academy of Sciences in 1981 for research studies published (1972-4) on motor nerve terminal metabolism during his Rockefeller Post-Doctoral Fellowship at the University of California (1970-73). In 1973-78 he was appointed Muscular Dystrophy Research Fellow, tenable in the Institute of Neurology, Southern General Hospital, Glasgow, where the development of AQIX® RS-I was initiated using human cadaver nerve-muscle tissue biopsies. In 1978 he was appointed Senior Lecturer in Neurophysiology, Wellington Clinical School and Victoria University, New Zealand.

He became Head of Research and Development and Consultant Physiologist of Res-Del Ltd, New Zealand (1980), and implemented his research into the preservation of human organs for transplant based upon his knowledge and internationally published research in physiology, neurophysiology, pharmacology and biotechnology. His contribution to organ preservation research over two decades and appointment as Patron of the New Zealand Muscular Dystrophy Association in 1988, led to his election as a Member of the Royal Society of New Zealand in 1997.

His research led him to invent the means of keeping animal and human organs alive outside of the body which culminated in the patented design of the Res-Del® Isolated Tissue/Organ Perfusion System (1980) and the development of the AQIX® RS-I Preservation and Perfusion medium, which he went on to successfully patent (2003/4), develop and manufacture.

He had early on recognized the revolutionary impact AQIX® RS-I would have for medical applications in human biotechnology as well as drug bioassay and in the advancement of organ transplant technology.

This breakthrough in physiological research was greatly ahead of its time and has been recognized as such by International Patents. However, it took the remarkable qualities of the AQIX® RS-I, a simulated interstitial fluid, for his discoveries to be embraced by global pharmaceutical companies.

Matthew Durdy, MBA, MA, FCSI, non- Executive Director

Matthew is a serial entrepreneur and prior to acting as a non-executive Director in Aqix Ltd, was Managing Director of Biotec Laboratories Limited, and Director EMEA of Control Risks Group, into both of which companies he invested cash, successfully managed strategic change and profitably realised his investment.

His early career, up to 2000, was in finance. Matthew was a Director responsible for investment due diligence for CDC Plc., a private equity and investment business with an international portfolio valued at over $3.5bn. He started his career in investment banking in 1988 at Prudential of America and Bank of America Hoare Govett. Over the course of his career he has been involved in and responsible for approximately $3bn worth of new investment, on the board of 14 companies across a breadth of sectors, and Chairman of two financial investment companies.

He has a BA (Hons.) in Natural Science from Christ Church, Oxford and an MBA (High Honours) from Chicago Booth, University of Chicago. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Securities Institute.

Outside of Aqix Ltd he is a mentor and lecturer at the University of Chicago Business School New Venture Course and a panel judge on their Global New Venture Challenge. He is also Chief Business Officer, Cell Therapy Catapult Scheme within the Technology Strategy Board (UK), a Government agency responsible for funding innovation in the medical industry.

Martin Powell, Finance Director

Martin is a qualified accountant with a wide experience of start up companies spun out from universities, in particular, Imperial College, Kings College and Queen Mary University. He performs the finance and administration functions for these companies which include Apatech (now sold to Baxter), deltaDOT and OSspray and is currently a director of OSspray Inc. Previous experience was as financial controller/service company director with international mining and travel companies.

He holds a translators degree in French and German from Heidelberg University and is Finance Director of the governing body for the sport Eton Fives. He is also an associate member of the Association of Corporate Treasurers.

Dr Abid Masood PhD, CChem., CSci., Head of Product Development

Abid completed his post-doctoral studies at the University of Oxford after which he joined Millennium pharmaceuticals, he was one of the lead medicinal chemists responsible for the discovery of MLN4924 (Currently in phase 2 clinical trials), the first NAE (Nedd8 activating enzyme) inhibitor. He then moved to Pfizer UK where he held a variety of roles in medicinal chemistry and finally in Drug Development and the Regulatory Affairs Department. Abid has successfully lead projects both in the UK and globally while working for Pfizer. Abid joined Aqix in 2011 as the Head of Product Development where he has successfuly managed the GMP manufacture of the companies lead product, AQIX RS-I, along with the regulatory management of company affairs.