Dr. Seung-Min Yang earned his B.S. in chemistry from Seoul National University and his Ph.D. in biophysics from the Department of Chemistry at Yale University. He went on to serve as a research professor in the Department of Cell Biology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
In industry, he contributed to the out-licensing of a MERTK inhibitor to AbbVie at the Innovative Drug Research Institute of Dong-A Socio Holdings.
As Head of the Research Institute and Director of R&D at Dong-A ST, he led pipeline strategy across small molecules, biologics, and ADCs, as well as the company's global open innovation efforts.
Bringing together strong scientific capabilities and extensive business development experience, Dr. Yang joined Surginex as COO, where he leads the build-out of the company's global out-licensing pipeline and its core partnership strategy.
Dr. Say-June Kim earned his M.D. from the
Catholic University of Korea, College of Medicine, where he also completed his master's and doctoral degrees in surgery.
As a professor of hepatobiliary-pancreatic surgery at Seoul St. Mary's Hospital and director of the Surgical Research Center at the Catholic University of Korea, he led pioneering research in nanoparticle-based drug delivery.
Through years of clinical practice,
Dr. Kim developed a deep understanding of the unmet needs that remain unresolved at the point of care. Driven to address them, he founded Surginex in 2020 and now serves as CEO, leading the development of RNA therapeutics built on the company's LNP platform.
Dr. Hyukjin Lee earned his B.S. in biomedical engineering from Johns Hopkins University, his M.S. in biomedical engineering from Columbia University, and his Ph.D. in life sciences from KAIST.
He completed his postdoctoral training in the laboratory of Professor Robert S. Langer at MIT, a co-founder of Moderna, where he conducted collaborative research with leading global LNP companies including Moderna and Alnylam.
Dr. Lee developed Korea's first mRNA-delivering lipid nanoparticle, an achievement recognized with a national science and technology award. He currently serves as a professor at Seoul National University and as CSO of Surginex, where he leads research and development strategy for the company's LNP platform.
SURGINEX is led by a team with deep expertise across the design, delivery,
and development of nucleic acid therapeutics. Spanning leadership in both academia and industry, they unite scientific innovation with strategic partnership to advance the next generation of medicines for patients.
WHO WE ARE
Meet the Leaders
CEO
Say-June Kim, M.D., Ph.D.
COO
Seung-Min Yang Ph.D.
CSO
Hyukjin Lee Ph.D.
Say-June Kim earned his MD from the Catholic University of Korea College of Medicine, followed by master's and doctoral degrees in surgery from the same institution. As Professor of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery at Seoul St. Mary's Hospital and Director of its Central Research Institute of Surgery, he led pioneering work in nanoparticle-based drug delivery.
Years of clinical practice gave him a firsthand understanding of the unmet needs that go unaddressed at the point of care. Driven to close that gap, he founded SURGINEX in 2020 and today serves as CEO, leading the development of RNA therapeutics built on the company's LNP delivery platform.
CEO Say-June Kim M.D., Ph.D.
Dr. Seung-Min Yang earned his B.S. in chemistry from Seoul National University and his Ph.D. in biophysics from the Department of Chemistry at Yale University. He went on to serve as a research professor in the Department of Cell Biology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
In industry, he contributed to the out-licensing of a MERTK inhibitor to AbbVie at the Innovative Drug Research Institute of Dong-A Socio Holdings.
As Head of the Research Institute and Director of R&D at Dong-A ST, he led pipeline strategy across small molecules, biologics, and ADCs, as well as the company's global open innovation efforts.
Bringing together strong scientific capabilities and extensive business development experience, Dr. Yang joined Surginex as COO, where he leads the build-out of the company's global out-licensing pipeline and its core partnership strategy.
COO Seung-Min Yang Ph.D.
Dr. Hyukjin Lee earned his B.S. in biomedical engineering from Johns Hopkins University, his M.S. in biomedical engineering from Columbia University, and his Ph.D. in life sciences from KAIST.
He completed his postdoctoral training in the laboratory of Professor Robert S. Langer at MIT, a co-founder of Moderna, where he conducted collaborative research with leading global LNP companies including Moderna and Alnylam.
Dr. Lee developed Korea's first mRNA-delivering lipid nanoparticle, an achievement recognized with a national science and technology award. He currently serves as a professor at Seoul National University and as CSO of Surginex, where he leads research and development strategy for the company's LNP platform.
CSO Hyukjin Lee Ph.D.
