Sebastián Bernales, PhD is the Chief Executive Officer and a Board Member of Synergenics, where he helps lead strategic vision, investment direction, and supports founders in building high-impact life science ventures. With a deep background in biotechnology and entrepreneurship, Sebastián has advanced scientific innovation across research, company formation, and portfolio stewardship.

Dr. Bernales earned his PhD in Cell Biology from the University of California, San Francisco, where he trained in the Walter Lab studying cellular stress responses and autophagy. He began his industry career at Medivation Inc., contributing to the development of XTANDI (enzalutamide), a prostate cancer therapy that played a significant role in the company’s acquisition by Pfizer.

As a serial entrepreneur and investor, Sebastián has co-founded and supported multiple biotech companies, including Praxis Biotech, Momentum Tx., and Metagenomi (Nasdaq: MGX), helping translate scientific breakthroughs into therapeutic advances. He also serves as a General Partner at Humboldt Fund and a Venture Partner at Droia Genetic Diseases Fund, working closely with early-stage teams to accelerate development and impact.

Sebastián holds board roles across a range of organizations, including PhageLab, viTToria Biotherapeutics Inc., Momentum Tx., Vedra Tx., and Botanical Solutions Inc. He is also active in scientific outreach and education through long-standing involvement with Fundación Ciencia & Vida, Fundación EcoScience, and Merken Biotech.

Recognized for his contributions to innovation and entrepreneurship, Sebastián received the Avonni National Innovation Award for Innovative Trajectory in 2020 (Santiago, Chile) and was honored as UCSF Graduate Division Alumni Association Alum of the Year in 2024.

Francisco Dopazo is Chief Investment Officer at Synergenic.
He is an investment professional with expertise in strategy, corporate governance, structuring, and portfolio management across the biotech, pharma, real estate, and consumer sectors.

He holds an MBA from MIT, an MS in Applied Analytics from Columbia University, and a BS in Production Engineering from Universidad Metropolitana.

As GP at Humboldt Fund, he focused on investments in the biotech and consumer sectors, providing strategic oversight and operational guidance. Prior to that, he served as Senior Director at Tishman Speyer, where he led more than $4 billion in transactions for institutional clients.

Earlier in his career, he was Vice President at JPMorgan, managing approximately $2 billion in multi-asset portfolios. He began his professional journey in strategy consulting at Latmedical.

Ella Garcia started working for Synergenics in July 2012 as Executive Assistant to Chairman Bill Rutter until his death on July 11, 2025.
In this role, she was involved in all aspects of operations mainly as its chief administrative officer which includes human resources, compliance, and record-keeping; responsibilities which continue to date.

Prior to coming to Synergenics, Ella was Executive Assistant to the President of The National Academy of Sciences in Washington DC, serving under two presidents for 18 years.

A Communications graduate of the prestigious Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines, she completed graduate studies in Journalism from the University of Maryland College Park.

Nina Walker graduated from the University of San Diego with a B.A. in Psychology in 2013. 

She then worked in clinical practice providing substance use treatment for a number of years until joining the administrative team at Synergenics in 2024.