David T. Shima

Ph.D., Scientific Advisory Board Member

As a leading researcher in angiogenesis and vascular cell biology, Prof. David Shima and collaborators performed pioneering studies in the early 1990s that elucidated the role of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) during pathological neovascularization within the eye. Dr Shima’s subsequent research efforts have provided important mechanistic insight into the varied roles of VEGF in blood vessel formation, neural cell development, and neovascular disease.

His investigations of intercellular communication within the cardiovasculature have also resulted in the identification and characterization of novel components of the vascular machinery, which represent potential targets for clinical intervention. Dr Shima joined Eyetech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in 2002 to establish and oversee research and pipeline initiatives, and currently he heads the (OSI) Eyetech Research Center. Before joining Eyetech, he was the head of the Endothelial Cell Biology Laboratory at the Imperial Cancer Research Fund in London, England, where he also completed his postdoctoral training in membrane biology and biochemistry. Dr Shima received his Ph.D. in 1995 from the Program in Cell and Developmental Biology at Harvard University.