Levitha provides consulting services to pharmaceutical firms and biotechs through expertise in:- laboratory organization- management- business development- scientific strategy- identification of technological solution in pharmacology- fund raising and IPO preparation.

MImAbs is a start-up CRO for the discovery, generation and pharmacological characterization of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of cancers and inflammatory diseases. It is located on the campus of Marseille Luminy University as part of the Marseille Immunopole.MImAbs SAS has been created in December 2020 as a spin-off of Aix-Marseille University. The academic lab has been founded in 2013 by Professor François Romagne, former CSO of Innate Pharma and current CSO of MImAbs.MImAbs has currently 37 employees including 30 scientists.

Upon completion of the sale of Cerep to Eurofins, I have been given responsibility for the creation and the early development of the Pharma Discovery Business Unit that combined Cerep and Panlabs services, two long-time competitors in drug screening and profiling.I continued to serve as Chairman of the Board and CEO of Cerep, which remained publicly traded on NYSE Euronext and stayed involved in the communication with employees and employee representative organisms (Comité d'Entreprise and Délégués du personnel).I focused business development mainly in reinforcing relationships with big pharmas.The re-organization of the division and the sales and marketing efforts in 2013 allowed a significant increase in the profitability of the business unit in 2014.

I created Cerep in 1990 as a service provider in pharmacology.Cerep developed first in France, then in Europe, in North America and in Japan and rapidly took the number 1 position in the field of drug screening and profiling.1996 - Cerep acquired a laboratory of combinatorial chemistry.The same year, I created the Robotic Group, that recently joined Elrig as Elrigfr.1997 - Cerep Inc. created in Redmond to further develop the business in the US.Launched the generation of BioPrint®, a database of in vitro effects of 2500 drugs.1998 - IPO on Nouveau Marché, now NYSE Euronext. The market liked the high growth rate (an average of 37% per year for the first 10 years) and the business model combining profitable services and drug discovery.Initiation of a multi-year drug discovery partnership with Sanofi.1999 – Partnership with BMS in drug discovery and BioPrint®. Acquisition of UPSA research laboratory.2002 – Multi-year collaboration on BioPrint® with Pfizer. 2003 – Multi-year collaboration with Eli Lilly2004 – Acquisition of Hesperion, a Swiss clinical service provider for 10.5 millions euros.2005 – Acquisition of a French drug discovery biotech specialized in oncology.At this stage, Cerep employed more 500 persons in the world with more than 200 clients, and a portfolio of drug candidates in partnership with both Sanofi and BMS and proprietary programs in oncology (preclinical stage).The decisions of both Sanofi and BMS to end the development of collaborative programs combined with the unfavorable euro exchange rate led to drastic decisions. The board approved my strategic plan to disengage from all drug discovery efforts and to focus the development of Cerep on in vitro profiling in pharmacology and ADME.2006 – Sale of Hesperion for 25 million euros.2007-2012 – Restructuration of the company as a profitable service company.2013 – The Board approved my proposal to sell Cerep to Eurofins.

I joined CNRS as soon as I returned from NIH.I was appointed in a startup near Poitiers and developed an activity of contract research for pharmaceutical companies.When the startup when bankrupt, the unit that I had initiated was developing nicely and attracted attention of venture capital.I then left CNRS to create Cerep.

Post-doctoral position.Main research programs:- regulation of IP3-induced Ca release- identification of a mechanism of GTP-induced Ca release- purification of protein kinase C- purification of phospholipase C