About Richard Knight

Dr Richard Knight PhD, ERT, is a Director and Co-founder of ApconiX, a preclinical toxicology and ion channel company that brings together a team of world-renowned nonclinical safety experts. Richard graduated from the University of Bradford in 1989 with a degree in Biomedical Sciences (Pharmacology) before gaining a PhD at the University of Leeds researching the role of adenosine receptors in renal function and toxicity. His research then included post-doctoral studies at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) into the effects of ischaemia/reperfusion injury on cardiac metabolism. Richard joined Zeneca Pharmaceuticals, Safety of Medicines Group in 1996 as a Study Director, and then Project Toxicologist across multiple therapy areas, from early discovery through to market. As Lead Toxicologist for Oncology, Richard was a member of both the Drug Safety and Metabolism, and Oncology Leadership teams with responsibility for safety across the AZ oncology portfolio. In this senior role he provided leadership and mentoring support to other project toxicologists. Richard has worked on many drug platforms over this time including small molecules, biologics, proteins and oligonucleotides and has been involved in bringing over 30 new candidate drugs into clinical trials and 5 to marketing approval.