Anil Sharma, MD, MBA, CIP
CEO/Medical Director, IRBCo.
Dr. Sharma has more than 10 years of clinical research experience as a faculty member in prestigious academic institutions such as UCLA, Stanford and VA Medical centers, working with world-renowned mentors and colleagues. He is well-established in the medical field through his numerous publications and presentations in many global conferences in addition to being co-author on book chapters. Dr. Sharma serves as a member of the financial committee in American Society of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics (ASCPT) and has helped develop the Pharmacogenomics module for CITI training. He has taken initiative in expanding research training internationally to India and his interest is global expansion of research ethics.
Dr. Sharma achieved his M.D. from S.M.S. Medical College in Jaipur, India and Post-Graduate Residency Training in Psychiatry from University of Nebraska/Creighton Medical Center. He then completed his executive M.B.A. at University of Tennessee, achieved his training in Clinical Pharmacology and research at University of California, Los Angeles and CIP completion in 2008.
Urvashi Arora, MA, CIM
IRB Manager and Admininstrative Director, IRBCo.
Urvashi has been involved in the IRB industry for the past 6 years, with previous experiences at both independent and academic IRBs - Biomedical Research Alliance of New York (BRANY) and New York University (NYU) School of Medicine, respectively. In both organizations, she was responsible for preliminary review of all new submissions to the IRB - full board and expedited. She brings with her experience in reviewing biomedical and social behavioral protocols, as well as a variety of expedited and exempt reviews. Urvashi obtained her MA in General Psychology, with a concentration in Neurocognitive Psychology from Adelphi University in Garden City, New York in 2005. She is keen on expanding IRBCo's operations in India.
Anthony Hong, MBA
Executive Director, IRBCo.
Anthony brings a breadth of clinical research and operational experience. Anthony has 20 years research working at research sites, CRO, study sponsors and serving as an ethical review member at the IRB. He has served at a patient recruitment specialist progressing to Director of Operations at the site level. His passion for research led him to further his career in research as a CRA, Study Manager and Senior Director, Head of Clinical Operations at Valeant Pharmaceuticals. Anthony received his MBA from the University of California, Los Angeles and is currently the Vice President of Clinical Operations at Epiphany Biosciences in Costa Mesa, CA.
Maricela Alarcón, PhD
Chairperson, Review Board, IRBCo.
Dr. Alarcón has extensive research experience in human behavioral genetics and is currently an Assistant Professor at the UCLA Department of Neurology with a research focus on autism. She has served as a faculty member on the UCLA Medical IRB. She has more than 40 scientific publications, presentations and book chapters and has been a reviewer for renowned scientific journals. Dr. Alarcón has been honored with numerous University awards in science and research. Dr. Alarcón recieved her Bachelor's in Psychology from Scripps College, CA, Master's in Genetics from University of Colorado, and Ph.D. also from University of Colorado in Behavioral Genetics.
