Ruxandra Draghia-Akli, MD, PhD

Ruxandra Draghia-Akli, MD, PhD, is the Executive Vice President and Head of Research & Development (R&D) with the responsibility of evaluating opportunities for our early and late-stage pipeline, ensuring the company is maximizing the tremendous potential of Novavax’s proven technology, including the Matrix-M™ adjuvant. She has more than 20 years of experience in vaccines and global public health, and throughout her career, has contributed to discovery, development and commercialization efforts. 

Dr. Draghia-Akli has previously served at Johnson & Johnson, as Global Head of Global Public Health R&D, delivering groundbreaking innovation to address climate-related, emerging and entrenched health threats, such as Dengue, coronaviruses, antimicrobial resistance, tuberculosis and leprosy. At Merck, she contributed to advancing innovative vaccines against Ebola, pneumococcal disease and human papillomavirus. She also worked with the European Commission, supporting programmatic, legislative, regulatory and policy issues in research and innovation. She was also responsible for securing start-up funding and grants at Advisys, Inc. (now Inovio Pharmaceuticals). Dr. Draghia-Akli focused on human genetics and advanced therapies research, notably on rare diseases. As scientific co-founder and research lead, her team delivered the first gene therapy product approved for animal applications in 2007. 

Over her career, Dr. Draghia-Akli has authored many scientific publications and served on numerous boards and committees to help shape thinking on vaccine and public health issues. 

Dr. Draghia-Akli received a baccalaureate in mathematics and physics from I.L. Caragiale Lycée, an MD from the University of Medicine Carol Davilla, and a PhD in human genetics from the University of Medicine Carol Davilla and undertook additional doctoral and post-doctoral training at University Rene Descartes and Baylor College of Medicine, respectively.