prof. dr. E.J.H.M. Claassen

Publications Eric Claassen: see metis.vu.nl

Eric is 20% academic and 80% entrepreneur. In the latter part he is active as: President of the Supervisory Board of AM-Pharma BV, Dynomics BV, EC3MA BV, and DC4U BV.
CEO/Statutory director of ViroNovative BV Coronovative BV, Viroclinics BV (all in Rotterdam with prof. dr. ADME Osterhaus) and ML Consultancy BV. He is a member of the SAB of ABN-AMRO life science venture fund and Emergent Biosolutions (Biological Warfare vaccines). Among various memberships of committees he is an elected member of the Netherlands Academy of Technology and Innovation (AcTI.nl) and the Dutch Health Council (Gezondheidsraad).

He was recently appointed as professor (0.1FTE) in “Knowledge Valorisation in the Life Sciences” at Erasmus MC in Rotterdam where he was professor of Immunology since 1994. In 2005 he was appointed as “Entrepreneur in Residence” at the RSM (Rotterdam School of Management; bedrijfskunde). In 2001 he was appointed as the first Biopartner professor "Entrepreneurship in the Life Sciences" on behalf of the Ministry of Economic Affairs at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (This chair, which he still holds, was transformed in 2005 to “Business management and Entrepreneurship in Health & Life Sciences 0.1 FTE). He is also a visiting professor for the Immunology courses at Institut Pasteur/University of Paris since 1992. 

After graduating cum laude in Medical Biology, Eric attained his PhD in Medicine some 30 months later in 1987 and spent 9 years at TNO Prevention an Health (vaccines and auto-immunity) after which period he became R&D director and deputy CEO at the Dutch Institute for Animal Science and Health (700 employees; 1996-2001). Since 2001 he combines many functions all related to his main focus on research management, valorization and business development in life sciences with a special emphasis on immunology (SMBWO board certified), microbiology, virology & vaccines. Eric is an author on over 150 peer reviewed (and highly quoted; see PubMed under E Claassen) papers and several patents.
Eric recently remarried (Conny Kruyssen) after losing his wife Dr. Suzan Jeurissen to breast cancer (Feb 2003) and is a father of five children. He is an avid sailor and photographer, is fluent in English and Dutch, and he has adequate reading and conversational skills in Spanish, Catalan, French and German.