Our Team

Mr. Htoo is the Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of Starlight Bio.  He is currently the Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Qlaris Bio.  He is a skilled biopharmaceutical strategist focused on ophthalmology and rare diseases.  He was previously the Chief Business Officer of Qrativ.  Before Qrativ, he was VP, Head of Business Development and Corporate Strategy at Novelion Therapeutics where he had helped orchestrate the merger of QLT Inc. and Aegerion Pharmaceuticals to form Novelion.  Mr. Htoo has also held leadership roles in business development and disease area strategy at Pfizer and previously at NPS Pharmaceuticals.

Mr. Htoo holds an MBA from the University of Rochester, and both an MS in Physiology and a BAS in Neurobiology and in Psychology from UC Davis.

Dr. Wirostko is the Chief Medical Advisor and Co-Founder of Starlight Bio.  She is currently the Chief Medical Officer and Co-Founder of Qlaris Bio. Dr. Wirostko is a practicing glaucoma specialist and Clinical Adjunct Professor at the University of Utah, Moran Eye Center.  She was previously the Chief Medical Officer of EyeGate Pharmaceuticals following its acquisition of Jade Therapeutics, where she was a Founder and Chief Scientific Officer. Previously, she served as the Chief Medical Officer at Altheos, a glaucoma-focused ophthalmology company, and she has also held leadership positions in medical and clinical development at Pfizer in Ophthalmology. 

Dr. Wirostko holds an MD from Columbia University, where she completed her residency, and holds a BA in Microbiology from Cornell University. 

Prof. Fautsch is the Chief Scientific Officer and General Manager of Starlight Bio where he leads the company's efforts to leverage the Starlight delivery platform.  He is currently Professor of Ophthalmology at Mayo Clinic and the Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board at Qlaris Bio where he is the inventor of the company's discovery platform.  He is a renowned expert in the physiology of glaucoma and has devoted over 3 decades to biochemistry and molecular biology research on disease pathophysiology and treatment in ophthalmology.

Prof. Fautsch holds a PhD from Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and holds a BS from Saint Johns University. 

Dr. Roy Chowdhury is Director, Translational Research of Starlight Bio.  Prior to Starlight Bio, he was Assistant Professor of ophthalmology at Mayo Clinic where he was the Program Lead in ophthalmology research at the laboratory of Prof. Fautsch and helped generate $6 M in grant funding for Mayo Clinic.  Dr. Roy Chowdhury was also a Postdoctoral Research Fellow and Research Associate at Mayo Clinic.  

Dr. Roy Chowdhury holds a PhD from Jadavpur University, an MBA from the University of Minnesota, and an MS and BS in Zoology from University of Calcutta. 

Dr. Peter Farina is Senior Strategic Advisor to Starlight Bio, Inc.  He is an accomplished R&D executive with decades of experience leading and advising teams in the successful development of new medicines helping patients across numerous disease areas, including COPD, emphysema, diabetes, and HIV as the Senior Vice President of Development at Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc.  He is also an Executive-in-Residence at Canaan Partners.  

Dr. Farina holds a PhD in organic chemistry from SUNY Buffalo and an honorary PhD from the University of Connecticut.