This Pride Month, we’re honoring the remarkable LGBTQ+ leaders and innovators in the Biotech industry. Trailblazers who are advancing science, breaking barriers, and making healthcare more equitable for all.
Representation drives innovation: diverse teams bring broader perspectives. When LGBTQ+ professionals can show up as their authentic selves, the entire field benefits.
1. United Therapeutics: Martine Rothblatt
United Therapeutics Corporation is a biotechnology company dedicated to developing and commercializing innovative products aimed at addressing the unmet medical needs of patients with chronic and life-threatening conditions. Dr. Martine Rothblatt founded United Therapeutics in 1996 after her daughter was diagnosed with pulmonary arterial hypertension. The company is best known for its work in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). They’re know for their therapies such as Remodulin®, Tyvaso®, and Orenitram®.
Rothblatt transitioned in the early 1990s and has written extensively on gender and identity. She emphasizes that being transgender is just one aspect of her identity. She encourages society to focus more on human potential than labels. Rothblatt is not only a pioneer in biotechnology and technology but also a bold voice for authenticity, inclusion, and the freedom to define oneself beyond traditional boundaries.
“Once we realize that our essential sweetness is in our minds, and that each of us has unique life-path potential not fully tethered to a body-determined route, then it is as sensible to be transhuman as it is to be transgendered. The being is mightier than the gene.” – Martine Rothblatt, Virtually Human
2. Nkarta Therapeutics: Paul Hastings
Nkarta Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company advancing the development of allogeneic, off-the-shelf natural killer (NK) cell therapies to treat autoimmune disease. They’re on a mission to harness the body’s natural killer cells – the immune system’s first responders – to deliver a safe, accessible form of cell therapy to treat B cell-mediated autoimmune diseases. In 2018 Paul Hastings became their CEO.
Paul Hastings was the first openly gay elected chairman of BIO, the industry’s international trade association. Not only is he a key figure in advancing LGBTQ+ visibility in executive leadership, but he’s also an avid supporter. “My career began with Roche at the peak of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Helping to get alpha-interferon, one of industry’s first biotech products to patients living with a rare form of cancer and AIDS-related Kaposi’s sarcoma.”
“My career began with Roche at the peak of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Helping to get alpha-interferon, one of industry’s first biotech products to patients living with a rare form of cancer and AIDS-related Kaposi’s sarcoma.” – Paul Hastings
3. Travere Therapeutics: Eric Dube
Travere Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to identify, develop, and deliver life-changing therapies to people living with rare disease. Based in San Diego, California, Travere specializes in conditions that are often overlooked, under-diagnosed, or difficult to treat, particularly in nephrology (kidney diseases) and metabolic disorders. In 2019 Eric Dube became the CEO.
When Dube he was 18 years old in the early ‘90s, he came out as a gay man: at a time when the HIV epidemic was at its height. He is also co-founder of OUTBio: the biotech industry’s largest LGBTQ+ professionals group founded to empower this community and be an advocate for it.
“Pride Month is about recognizing and standing on the shoulders of those that came before us and realizing that we couldn’t do what we could today without them. And that makes me incredibly proud to now serve others because of their efforts.” – Eric Dube
4. Arrakis Therapeutics: Jennifer Petter
Arrakis Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company developing oral medicines that target RNA to treat a range of diseases They’ve set out on a mission to open new territories of medicine by creating a pioneering class of genetic medicines: RNA-targeted small molecules (rSMs). The company is based in Waltham, Massachusetts, and was founded in 2015 by Jennifer Petter, now the company’s Chief Innovation Officer.
Petter is not only a highly accomplished scientist and biotech leader, but also one of the most prominent openly transgender executives in the life sciences industry. Her work and visibility have made her a trailblazer, both scientifically and socially. In an interview she said, “Science should be a welcoming place for everyone. Our best discoveries come when people feel safe to contribute fully.”
“Science should be a welcoming place for everyone—our best discoveries come when people feel safe to contribute fully.” – Jennifer Petter
5. Stoke Therapeutics: Isabel Aznarez
Stoke Therapeutics is a biotechnology company dedicated to addressing the underlying cause of severe diseases. The company is pursuing an entirely new approach to treating severe diseases. They are initially focused on diseases of the central nervous system and the eye. With an emphasis on haploinsufficiencies, which are diseases caused by a loss of about half of the normal protein function.
Dr. Isabel Aznarez co-founded the company and currently leads the research division. Dr. Aznarez is openly LGBTQ+ and has been an advocate for diversity and inclusion within the scientific community. She was recognized as a 2022 LGBT Trailblazer by the Boston Business Journal. For her efforts to ensure equity and inclusion at work and in the community.
“When you’re not at peace or happy with who you are, it’s hard to do anything with confidence. When I stopped pretending, it gave me a huge boost of confidence.” – Dr. Isabel Aznarez
6. Celldex Therapeutics: Denice Torres
Celldex is a clinical stage biotechnology company dedicated to developing monoclonal and bispecific antibodies that address devastating diseases for which available treatments are inadequate. Our pipeline includes antibody-based therapeutics which have the ability to engage the human immune system and/or directly affect critical pathways to improve the lives of patients with inflammatory diseases and many forms of cancer.
Denice Torres became a board member at Celldex in 2025. Torres has served on a number of board for many biotech companies such as Seaport Therapeutics, Bluebird Bio, and more. Torres is openly lesbian and has spoken publicly about her journey navigating the corporate world. Not just as a woman but also a member of the LGBTQ+ community. Her visibility has been especially meaningful in industries like biotech and pharma, where LGBTQ+ representation at the executive level is still emerging.
In an industry defined by innovation, perseverance, and hope, LGBTQ+ leaders in biotechnology bring more than just scientific expertise. They bring authenticity, courage, and vision that inspire meaningful change across the entire field.
During pride month, and every month, we say thank you.