Academia vs Industry
27 November 2025 - Ghent ICC
This interesting discussion is for MSc and PhD students and postdocs who are on the fence. Do you want to continue your career in academic research, or should you try working in the industry? In this session our academic or industry experts will discuss the pros and cons of both paths. At the end of the session, the audience (you!) will get the opportunity to get involved.
Setareh Tasdighian | Senior Postdoctoral Scientist | VIB | WiDS
Dr. Setareh Tasdighian is a bioinformatician with a strong mathematical background, developing AI and machine learning methods for plant biology, immunology, and single-cell data. After earning her MSc in Mathematical Modeling with highest honors, she earned her PhD in bioinformatics at Ghent University and went on to work as scientist at BASF, leading technical projects and academic–industrial collaborations. At VIB, she worked in partnership with GSK to design a novel machine learning pipeline for systems vaccinology, and continues to develop AI-based tools for cell-cell communication analysis. A Harvard-trained leader in management, she is the founder and director of Women in Data Science Belgium, advancing leadership, mentorship, and community for women in data science and AI.
Setareh Tasdighian | Senior Postdoctoral Scientist | VIB | WiDS
Dr. Setareh Tasdighian is a bioinformatician with a strong mathematical background, developing AI and machine learning methods for plant biology, immunology, and single-cell data. After earning her MSc in Mathematical Modeling with highest honors, she earned her PhD in bioinformatics at Ghent University and went on to work as scientist at BASF, leading technical projects and academic–industrial collaborations. At VIB, she worked in partnership with GSK to design a novel machine learning pipeline for systems vaccinology, and continues to develop AI-based tools for cell-cell communication analysis. A Harvard-trained leader in management, she is the founder and director of Women in Data Science Belgium, advancing leadership, mentorship, and community for women in data science and AI.
Marle is a postdoctoral research scientist at CMN VIB and the University of Antwerp, specializing in transcriptional regulation in vascular and neurodegenerative diseases. Her PhD at Uppsala University focused on endothelial heterogeneity, using full-length single-cell RNA sequencing to uncover novel vascular subpopulations, hybrid vessels, and cell-type-specific signaling pathways, guiding therapeutic strategies for lymphatic and venous malformations. Her research now centers on isoform regulation in the brain, leveraging transcriptomics, chromatin profiling, and network analysis to elucidate mechanisms underlying neurodegeneration and identify potential therapeutic targets.
Christel Menet | Chief Scientific Officer | Confo Therapeutics
Christel joined Confo Therapeutics as Chief Scientific Officer in 2016. She was among the first chemists at Galapagos, where she rose to Director of Medicinal Chemistry and co-invented filgotinib (Jyseleca®), now approved for the treatment of moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis. Before Galapagos, she contributed to GPCR drug discovery at Faust Pharmaceuticals (now Domain Therapeutics). With more than 20 years of R&D leadership and over 25 patent applications, Christel brings deep expertise in drug discovery and development. She earned her PhD in Organic Chemistry at the University of Manchester under Prof. Jonathan Clayden.
About Confo Therapeutics
Confo Therapeutics is a clinical‐stage biotech based in Ghent, Belgium, founded in 2015 as a spin-out of VIB and Vrije Universiteit Brussel. It has developed a proprietary technology platform using “ConfoBodies®” — single-domain antibodies that stabilize G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) in specific, disease-relevant conformations. With this, the company is advancing a pipeline of both small molecules and biologics, focused primarily on metabolic, endocrine, and pain disorders. In 2024 it raised €60 million in Series B funding to push several programs into clinical development.
Christel Menet | Chief Scientific Officer | Confo Therapeutics
Christel joined Confo Therapeutics as Chief Scientific Officer in 2016. She was among the first chemists at Galapagos, where she rose to Director of Medicinal Chemistry and co-invented filgotinib (Jyseleca®), now approved for the treatment of moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis. Before Galapagos, she contributed to GPCR drug discovery at Faust Pharmaceuticals (now Domain Therapeutics). With more than 20 years of R&D leadership and over 25 patent applications, Christel brings deep expertise in drug discovery and development. She earned her PhD in Organic Chemistry at the University of Manchester under Prof. Jonathan Clayden.
About Confo Therapeutics
Confo Therapeutics is a clinical‐stage biotech based in Ghent, Belgium, founded in 2015 as a spin-out of VIB and Vrije Universiteit Brussel. It has developed a proprietary technology platform using “ConfoBodies®” — single-domain antibodies that stabilize G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) in specific, disease-relevant conformations. With this, the company is advancing a pipeline of both small molecules and biologics, focused primarily on metabolic, endocrine, and pain disorders. In 2024 it raised €60 million in Series B funding to push several programs into clinical development.
Sam Massa | Head of Protein R&D and CMC | Precirix
Sam Massa holds a PhD in Bio-engineering Sciences (VUB) and has > 10 years of experience in the discovery, engineering and development of camelid single domain antibody fragments (sdAbs). Prior to joining Precirix, Sam held a post-doc position at VIB in the context of an industrial collaboration. In 2018 Sam joined Precirix as Project Manager Discovery, focusing on the development of the single domain antibody platform. Today he’s heading the Protein R&D-CMC team, that is responsible for the discovery of new hits up to clinical manufacturing of lead sdAbs.
About Precirix
PRECIRIX is a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to extending and improving the lives of cancer patients by designing and developing precision radiopharmaceuticals, using camelid single-domain antibodies (sdAb) labelled with radiometals.The company's lead program targets Fibroblast Activation Protein (FAP) and is transitioning into the clinic. It has the potential to be the best-in-class alpha-emitting targeted radiotherapy against the pan tumor target FAP. Research on multiple isotopes, linker technology and combination therapies is ongoing to further expand the platform.
Sam Massa | Head of Protein R&D and CMC | Precirix
Sam Massa holds a PhD in Bio-engineering Sciences (VUB) and has > 10 years of experience in the discovery, engineering and development of camelid single domain antibody fragments (sdAbs). Prior to joining Precirix, Sam held a post-doc position at VIB in the context of an industrial collaboration. In 2018 Sam joined Precirix as Project Manager Discovery, focusing on the development of the single domain antibody platform. Today he’s heading the Protein R&D-CMC team, that is responsible for the discovery of new hits up to clinical manufacturing of lead sdAbs.
About Precirix
PRECIRIX is a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to extending and improving the lives of cancer patients by designing and developing precision radiopharmaceuticals, using camelid single-domain antibodies (sdAb) labelled with radiometals.The company's lead program targets Fibroblast Activation Protein (FAP) and is transitioning into the clinic. It has the potential to be the best-in-class alpha-emitting targeted radiotherapy against the pan tumor target FAP. Research on multiple isotopes, linker technology and combination therapies is ongoing to further expand the platform.
Remco Jongkind | Programme Manager Education | Hyphen Projects
Remco Jongkind's aim is to help people move their careers forward. He does this by hosting several presentations on behalf of Hyphen Projects, the organizer of the BCF Career Event. Remco works as a lecturer, bachelor thesis coordinator and project leader at the faculty of medicine of the University of Amsterdam. His background is in Biochemistry (Amsterdam University College) and Pharmacology (University of Oxford). His Life Science background allows him to relate to the problems faced by young professionals in finding their ideal career paths. During his career he especially enjoyed helping others and teaching, e.g at the University of Amsterdam, Hyphen Projects and University of Oxford.
Remco Jongkind | Programme Manager Education | Hyphen Projects
Remco Jongkind's aim is to help people move their careers forward. He does this by hosting several presentations on behalf of Hyphen Projects, the organizer of the BCF Career Event. Remco works as a lecturer, bachelor thesis coordinator and project leader at the faculty of medicine of the University of Amsterdam. His background is in Biochemistry (Amsterdam University College) and Pharmacology (University of Oxford). His Life Science background allows him to relate to the problems faced by young professionals in finding their ideal career paths. During his career he especially enjoyed helping others and teaching, e.g at the University of Amsterdam, Hyphen Projects and University of Oxford.
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