Mark Hensley joins RBL LLC as a senior adviser
HOUSTON, June 24, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — RBL LLC, a pioneering biotech venture creation studio designed to rapidly build companies based on lifesaving medical technologies, today announced the addition of Mark Hensley as a senior adviser. Hensley will leverage his proven experience in biotech venture creation, corporate strategy and business development to accelerate the development and commercialization of breakthrough life sciences technologies at the Houston-based venture creation studio.
With more than 15 years of experience in the biotechnology industry, Hensley brings a wealth of knowledge in company formation, venture financing, mergers and acquisitions and strategic partnerships. He has a proven track record of successfully identifying high-potential biotech opportunities and scaling new ventures across a variety of therapeutic areas, including transplant, immunology and rare diseases.
'Following our October launch, we expect Mark's impressive track record of leading large business transactions in the biotech industry, coupled with his deep expertise in strategic partnerships, to play an instrumental role in advancing our mission,' said Paul Wotton, CEO and managing partner of RBL LLC. 'As we continue launching cutting-edge biomedical innovations, we look forward to working with Mark's strategic guidance to drive the development of breakthrough therapies from the lab bench to the clinic.'
'Joining RBL LLC as it prepares for the launch of multiple promising clinical-stage biotech companies is a great opportunity,' Hensley said. 'I look forward to working alongside the talented team at RBL LLC to help identify and steer innovative Houston-based biotech ventures to success while fostering the strategic partnerships necessary to accelerate the development of therapies that will have a lasting impact on patients worldwide.'
Hensley currently serves as chief operating officer at Heron Therapeutics, a commercial-stage biotechnology company focused on improving the lives of patients by developing and commercializing therapeutic innovations that improve medical care. Prior to this role, he served as CEO of Veloxis Pharmaceuticals, where he led a major buy-side acquisition, expanding the company's global footprint in nephrology. As chief commercial officer at Veloxis, he played a pivotal role in executing a billion-dollar sell-side transaction, demonstrating his strategic vision and ability to drive substantial growth in the biotechnology sector. Hensley holds a Bachelor of Science in biology with a minor in chemistry from the University of North Texas, and his expertise spans a wide range of disciplines within the biotechnology and life sciences industries.
About RBL LLC:RBL LLC is a pioneering biotech venture creation studio based in Houston that is dedicated to accelerating the development of breakthrough medical technologies and therapies through company formation. RBL provides entrepreneurs, researchers and innovators with infrastructure, financial support and strategic guidance as well as access to laboratory space and shared resources in the Texas Medical Center Helix Park. For more information, please visit https://www.rbl-llc.com/.
Media Contact:
Russo PartnersDavid Schull or Liz Phillips(347) 956-7697david.schull@russopartnersllc.com elizabeth.phillips@russopartnersllc.com
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Straits Times
an hour ago
- New Straits Times
Target explores factory-direct shipping model
KUALA LUMPUR: Target is exploring the delivery of products directly to customers' homes from factories, similar to the Chinese e-commerce rivals Temu and Shein, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The move comes at a time when the big-box retailer, similar to the broader retail industry, struggles with stiff competition, persistent declines in sales and muted spending amid tariff uncertainty. According to the report, Target is looking to expand its range of low-cost offerings through this initiative to focus on lower priced and new products. The Minneapolis, Minnesota-based company's effort, which is said to be in early stages, includes products such as apparel, household goods and other non-food items, Bloomberg News reported. Target did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Competitors such as Temu, which is owned by PDD Holdings , and fast-fashion giant Shein had earlier benefited from the service of drop-shipping items directly to customers on the back of the 'de minimis' exemption. 'De minimis', a legal term referring to matters of little importance, describes the US waiver of standard customs procedures and tariffs on imported items worth less than US$800 shipped to individuals. The Trump administration, however, ended duty-free access for low-value shipments from China and Hong Kong to the US on May 2, removing 'de minimis' exemption, Temu saw a steep decline in daily US users last month, compared with March.
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Astronauts from India, Poland, Hungary launched on first space station mission
The Axiom-4 crew, Pilot Shubhanshu Shukla of India, Mission Specialist Tibor Kapu of Hungary, Commander Peggy Whitson of the U.S., and Mission Specialist Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland, react as they greet their family members before their mission to the International Space Station, in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S., June 24, 2025. REUTERS/Steve Nesius CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) -NASA retiree turned private astronaut Peggy Whitson was launched on the fifth spaceflight of her career early on Wednesday, joined by crewmates from India, Poland and Hungary heading for their countries' first visit to the International Space Station. The astronaut team lifted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, at about 2:30 a.m. EDT (0630 GMT), beginning the latest mission organized by Texas-based startup Axiom Space in partnership with Elon Musk's rocket venture SpaceX. The four-member crew was carried aloft on a towering SpaceX launch vehicle consisting of a Crew Dragon capsule perched atop a two-stage Falcon 9 rocket. Live video showed the towering spacecraft streaking into the night sky over Florida's Atlantic coast trailed by a brilliant yellowish plume of fiery exhaust. It marked the first Crew Dragon flight since Musk briefly threatened to decommission the spacecraft after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to cancel Musk's government contracts in a high-profile political feud between the two men earlier this month. Axiom 4's autonomously operated Crew Dragon was expected to reach the ISS after a flight of about 28 hours, then dock with the outpost as the two vehicles soar together in orbit some 250 miles (400 km) above Earth. If all goes according to plan, the Axiom 4 crew will be welcomed aboard the orbiting space laboratory Thursday morning by its seven current resident occupants - three astronauts from the U.S., one from Japan and three cosmonauts from Russia. Whitson, 65, and her three Axiom 4 crewmates - Shubhanshu Shukla, 39, of India, Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski, 41, of Poland, and Tibor Kapu, 33, of Hungary - are slated to spend 14 days aboard the space station conducting microgravity research. The mission stands as the fourth such flight since 2022 arranged by Axiom as the Houston-headquartered company builds on its business of putting astronauts sponsored by private companies and foreign governments into Earth orbit. For India, Poland and Hungary, the launch marked a return to human spaceflight after more than 40 years and the first mission to send astronauts from each of those three countries to the International Space Station. The Axiom 4 participation of Shukla, an Indian air force pilot, is seen by India's own space program as a kind of precursor to the debut crewed mission of its Gaganyaan orbital spacecraft, planned for 2027. The Axiom 4 crew is led by Whitson, who retired from NASA in 2018 after a pioneering career that included her tenure as the first woman to serve as the U.S. space agency's chief astronaut. She also was the first woman to command an ISS expedition and the first to do so twice. Now a consultant and director of human spaceflight for Axiom, she has logged a career total of 675 days in space, a U.S. record, during three NASA missions and a fourth flight to space as commander of the Axiom 2 mission in 2023. The Axiom 4 mission was previously scheduled for liftoff on Tuesday before a forecast of unsuitable weather forced a 24-hour postponement. (Reporting by Steve Nesius in Cape Canaveral, Florida, Steve Gorman in Los Angeles and Joey Roulette in Washington; Editing by Saad Sayeed)
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
With Kipyegon, Nike hopes to break a record - and win back women runners
NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) -Nike is betting its endeavor to help Kenyan athlete Faith Kipyegon run a mile in under four minutes will recapture the attention of women consumers who have been looking elsewhere for running shoes and clothes. Industry experts and women runners say it will take more than a bold spectacle to draw women back to the brand. Kipyegon's attempt, branded "Breaking4", set for Thursday at the Stade Charléty in Paris, is part of new CEO Elliott Hill's efforts to pull Nike out of a sales slump and improve its image. From 2021 to 2024, Nike's share of the global sports footwear market dropped from 28.8% to 26.3%, according to Euromonitor International, with consumers defecting to smaller, newer brands like On and Hoka. Nike's popularity has slipped with women in particular. Sales of Nike Women products grew just 4.4% over that three-year period, while Nike Men sales grew 13.5%. Nike has been "obsessed with getting women back" since at least 2021, said a former Nike manager who requested anonymity as they were not authorized to speak publicly. Understanding its female consumer base and how to draw in more women has been a key internal priority as Lululemon and others have eaten into its market share among women, the person added. Beaverton, Oregon-based Nike declined to comment on those details. But Chief Innovation Officer John Hoke told Reutersthe company is doubling its investment in research on women athletes' anatomy and biodynamics versus 18 months ago. Hoke declined to disclose the amount of that investment, but said in an interview that the company's Sports Research Lab historically "had over-indexed on males, so what we are doing is we're now right-sizing." Kipyegon will wear new track spikes that are lighter than those she wore to win 1,500-meter gold at the Olympics last year, a running suit with 3D-printed beads to minimize friction, and a 3D-printed sports bra Nike says is more breathable than anything on the market. Mindful that track spikes are a niche product, Nike is putting its marketing emphasis on the bra, in development for more than two years, which it expedited for Kipyegon's run, Hoke said. Prototypes have been tested on other Nike athletes, including WNBA star Caitlin Clark, he said, adding that the company plans to market it commercially by 2028. Nike's goal with Breaking4 is to attract the attention of serious runners, says David Swartz, an analyst at Morningstar. But whether and when the publicity will translate to sales is unclear. Nike has launched a line of running shoes and clothes in Kipyegon's name, but the people most likely to buy them may not overlap with Breaking4's target audience. Angelina Monti, a Pittsburgh-based physiologist who, at 23, has already competed in 17 marathons, says she's intrigued by Kipyegon's effort, but isn't likely to base a purchase on it. LESS GROUNDBREAKING The market is more competitive now than in 2017, when Nike held its last unofficial record attempt - Breaking2 - in which athletes Eliud Kipchoge, Lelisa Desisa and Zersenay Tadese attempted to run a marathon in under two hours. None succeeded at the time, but Kipchoge did break two hours in a subsequent 2019 attempt and the hype created around the Vaporfly shoes he wore helped Nike's market share in running climb to a record high. The Vaporfly, first introduced in 2016, included a carbon plate to help runners go faster for longer, and sparked a "super shoe" race among sports brands. Nike's innovations for Kipyegon's attempt seem less groundbreaking, experts say. "The suit seems to be quite unique and envelope-pushing, whereas the footwear just seems to be a better version of what she has run in in the past," said running shoe designer Richard Kuchinsky. Still, "it's nice to see (Nike) invest in a woman, even if this one feels more of a stretch than Breaking2," said Alison Wade, a former college track & field coach and creator of Fast Women, a newsletter dedicated to women's competitive distance running. Nike has announced several initiatives focused on women since Hill took over, including the "After Dark Tour" series of half-marathon and 10-kilometre races in seven cities around the world. But as it tries to regain credibility with women, it starts at a deficit. In April, the company agreed to settle a 2018 lawsuit from female employees alleging widespread workplace discrimination. Nike's partnership with Kim Kardashian-owned Skims drew criticism from some former employees for its emphasis on products to make women "feel strong and sexy." The partnership has yet to launch a product. Any record Kipyegon sets on Thursday would be unofficial, as she will have pacers and won't be in an official competition. Running experts are skeptical Kipyegon can break a four-minute mile, which would require shaving 3.1% off her previous record. "But," Wade said, "maybe Nike has something up its sleeve and it'll turn out we were all wrong." (Reporting by Helen Reid in London and Nicholas Brown in New York, Editing by Lisa Jucca and Bill Berkrot)
