Les Miranda is Director of Research in Therapeutic Discovery at Amgen, Inc.. A graduate of the University of W. Sydney (Australia), he obtained his Ph.D. in synthetic peptide and protein chemistry from the University of Queensland (Australia). Les held a research position at the Carlsberg Laboratory (Denmark), and then served as an Associate Director at Gryphon Therapeutics (South San Francisco, USA) with Professor Stephen B.H. Kent, where he contributed to the development of methods for the total chemical synthesis and medicinal optimization of protein therapeutics. At Amgen, he is responsible for peptide and hybrid modality discovery, and has supported numerous preclinical and clinical development programs. Les has led several cross-functional teams through various stages of drug discovery and development. During his career, Les has authored more than 50 publications and contributed to more than 10 issued patents.