Belharra Therapeutics

Illuminating the entire proteome to unleash a new wave of therapeutics

Every day, we passionately pursue the opportunity to redefine the way drugs are discovered. At Belharra, we are disrupting the drug discovery paradigm using our novel photoaffinity-based chemoproteomic platform. Our mission is to lead the next wave of drug discovery by making it possible to target any binding site, on any protein, in any cell type.

We envision a world where the entire proteome is druggable, and no disease is untreatable. We are led by this shared purpose, and together, we are boldly advancing chemoproteomics, and, ultimately, improving the human experience.

For over a decade, we refined this vision. It’s required the right people, with the right tools, and the right approach to science. But now, the idea, technology, team, and track record to translate this vision into reality have converged. And an epic ride is beginning.

We are a united, diverse, and talented team that is pursuing the opportunity to do something truly different with a unique approach for bench-to-clinic drug discovery and development. Guided by proven leadership, we’re distinctly positioned to enable therapeutics for previously impossible to treat conditions. For us, tackling big goals is what makes life worth living. And it’s what sets us apart.

Our unique library can probe non-traditional binding sites in an unbiased manner. Unlike previous chemoproteomics strategies, our library binds non-covalently to protein targets moving into novel druggable space, allowing greater potential for translation. We use proteomics and informatics capabilities to perform high-throughput screening across the entire proteome or focus on a specific protein-of-interest, in a real-world, cellular context. Together, our unique platform has identified hits against previously “undruggable” targets.

Collaboration between our talented medicinal chemists, proteomics experts, data scientists and chemical biologists is what powers our drug discovery platform. Together, we focus on a common goal: delivering transformative, first-in-class medicines for patients suffering from the most serious diseases by merging innovative biology, medicinal chemistry, and bioinformatics approaches to drug discovery. Our collaborative approach enables us to tackle drug discovery in vital areas – immunology and oncology – and extends to our external partners.

We are a unified group of industry leaders with the right traits to drive us toward accomplishing our mission and turning our vision into a reality. We always expand our potential by bringing in the best and brightest up-and-coming talent and aspire to make a lasting and meaningful impact in the lives of patients.

Jeff  Jonker

Jeff Jonker

  • Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
Rachel  Lane

Rachel Lane

  • Chief Business Officer (CBO)
Sean  Buchanan

Sean Buchanan

  • Chief Scientific Officer (CSO)
Justin  Ernst

Justin Ernst

  • Senior Vice President, Head of Chemistry
Sherry  Niessen

Sherry Niessen

  • Vice President, Head of Platform & Proteomics
Brett  Weinstein

Brett Weinstein

  • Vice President, Finance
Jessica  Alexander

Jessica Alexander

  • Senior Director, Program & Alliance Management
Olesya  Ulanovskaya

Olesya Ulanovskaya

  • Senior Director, Discovery Biology
Yvonne  Schmidt

Yvonne Schmidt

  • Director, Medicinal Chemistry
John  Teijaro

John Teijaro

  • Co-Founder
Ben  Cravatt

Ben Cravatt

  • Co-Founder
Stuart  Schreiber

Stuart Schreiber

  • Co-Founder