Management Team

Samuel D. Riccitelli

Chairman and interim President and Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Riccitelli is the Chairman and interim President and Chief Executive Officer of Biocept since February 2022. Mr. Riccitelli has been a member of the Board of Directors of Biocept since October 2020 and Chairman of the Board since July 2021. Mr. Riccitelli has served as a member of the Board of Directors of Orthopediatrics, Inc. (Nasdaq: KIDS) since 2017, a company focused exclusively on the orthopedic implant needs of children. He also served as Chief Executive Officer of Pathnostics, LLC, a molecular diagnostics company focused on improving antibiotic stewardship, from 2019 to 2020. From 2017 to 2019, Mr. Riccitelli served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Precipio, Inc. (Nasdaq: PRPO), a diagnostic services company. From 2012 to 2017, Mr. Riccitelli served as President and Chief Executive Officer and a Director of Signal Genetics, Inc., a publicly traded molecular diagnostic company that was ultimately sold to Miragen Therapeutics, Inc. Mr. Riccitelli was also previously the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Genoptix, Inc., a publicly traded diagnostic company that was sold to Novartis in 2011. Mr. Riccitelli served in a number of R&D and general management leadership positions for Becton, Dickinson and Company, as a vice president and general manager and as a board member for BD Ventures, LLC., a venture capital fund. Mr. Riccitelli received a B.A. from Washington and Jefferson College and a M.S. Engineering degree from The University of Texas.

Philippe Marchand, Ph.D.

Chief Operating Officer

Dr. Marchand is a veteran biotechnology executive and scientist with a proven track record in transitioning concepts to implementation and completion. Most recently, Dr. Marchand was the Chief Operating Officer of Biosplice Therapeutics, aiding in the development of first-in-class small-molecule therapeutics based on the pioneering science of alternative pre-mRNA splicing. Previously, he was the Chief Information Officer of Genoptix, where he oversaw the creation of the company’s diagnostics laboratory, the subsequent IPO, and the acquisition by Novartis. Following the acquisition, he assumed responsibilities for global IT operations for Novartis Oncology. Earlier in his career, Dr. Marchand founded two San Diego-based technology companies, Celula and Parallel Solutions. Dr. Marchand received an MS (Hons), a Ph.D., and the Research Habilitation in Electrical Engineering from the Université de Haute Alsace, France, and was a Lavoisier post-doctoral fellow at the University of California, San Diego.

Antonino Morales

Director and interim Chief Financial Officer

Mr. Morales is the interim Chief Financial Officer of Biocept and board member, bringing more than 30 years of broad leadership experience in the US and Latin America. He has served in multiple senior management or consulting roles with various Fortune 100 companies including Citibank, Bank of America, Arthur Andersen, Mazda North America, and McDonald’s. Mr. Morales led the expansion of Citibank’s consumer finance operation into Latin America and most recently served as president and CEO of Apoyo Financiero, Inc. a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). Morales has led multiple private equity backed start-up companies. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from the University of Southern California and is a licensed CPA.

Darrell Taylor, Esq.

Chief Legal Officer and Chief Compliance Officer, Corporate Secretary
Registered In-House Counsel

Darrell Taylor brings more than 30 years of healthcare and leadership experience, including over 20 years as a healthcare attorney. He is an experienced attorney who has provided legal regulatory and compliance counsel to global biopharmaceutical companies as well as numerous biotech start-ups. Most recently, Darrell served as Chief Compliance Officer for Precision Diagnostics and its CLIA-certified and CAP-accredited clinical laboratory.

Previous to his in-house positions, Darrell honed his skills as an attorney with the global law firm, DLA Piper, serving healthcare companies, biopharma, private equity, venture capital, institutional investors, and providers by assisting them with navigating opportunities in this highly complex, heavily regulated, and ever-changing industry. Darrell earned his J.D. from the University of Notre Dame Law School and his B.S.M.T., with high honors, at The University of Texas Medical Branch.

Dave Karlander

Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations

Dave Karlander leads our sales, marketing, managed care, and client services teams, and brings over 25 years of experience successfully building and managing major brands in diagnostics, devices, and pharmaceuticals. His previous experience includes commercial executive positions at Exact Sciences, Novartis, and Orthofix, where he led successful campaigns to develop and expand product pipelines, reimbursement rates, and sales volumes, among other responsibilities. Dave earned his MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management, and a Bachelor of Science from Miami University.

Barbara Blouw, Ph.D.

Vice President, Clinical Development

Dr. Barbara Blouw is a scientist and leads the clinical development for our product pipeline by overseeing activities such as clinical trials, regulatory, and publication strategy. She joined Biocept in 2020 and has led different Investigator Initiated Trials, as well as the development of the FORESEE Study.

Barbara brings over 15 years of combined pharma and biotechnology leadership experience. She performed her graduate school research at the University of California San Diego and completed her post-doctoral research at the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Research Institute, as a recipient of a fellowship of the California Breast Cancer program. During her work in academic research, she pioneered the development of transgenic mouse models of cancer, particularly for brain tumors. Barbara then transitioned to Navigate Biopharma as an industry professional and oversaw the assay development, validation, and clinical trial testing for a variety of assays, and led the startup for the histopathology lab. Before joining Biocept, she worked at Halozyme Therapeutics where she led multiple clinical and non-clinical collaborations, published multiple peer reviewed publications, and led various regulatory submissions to the FDA and EMA.

Nathan Sweed, M.D.

Medical Director

Dr. Sweed oversees the medical use of Biocept’s technology and laboratory capabilities. He joined Biocept in 2021 to assist in the launch of the CNSide cerebrospinal fluid testing platform. He works closely with our operations, clinical development, and research teams to advise on the medical application, clinical implementation, and execution of Biocept’s core technologies. Dr. Sweed is a graduate of the University of Houston (B.S. Biochemical and Biophysical Sciences) and University of Texas Health San Antonio (M.D.). He received post-graduate medical education in anatomic and clinical pathology at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and University of Texas Health San Antonio. His medical interests include medical education, patient education, and the advancement of novel and innovative diagnostic methods.