The Aspida Dx Team
Pierre Cassigneul, CEO
Pierre Cassigneul is a seasoned executive with over 30 years of senior management experience in the healthcare and medical device sectors across Europe and the United States. Known for his strategic vision and innovative approach, Mr. Cassigneul has successfully designed and globally launched numerous high-tech products that have significantly impacted patient care.
Currently, he serves as the CEO of Aspida Dx, a pioneering diagnostic startup that leverages cutting-edge detection methods for point-of-care applications, with its initial focus on drug detection in oral fluid. In addition, he is a member of the Board of Directors of Enterome, an innovative therapeutics company harnessing the power of the microbiome to transform patient health, and also a member of the NMS Labs Board of Directors.
Previously, Mr. Cassigneul held the position of CEO at NMS Labs, where he drove operational excellence and market growth. He also served as CEO of XDx (now known as CareDx), where he led the development and launch of AlloMap, a groundbreaking molecular LDT test. This test received FDA clearance, became part of the inaugural clinical guidelines from the ISHLT, and gained coverage from major private payers as well as Medicare.
As the former Vice President of Diabetes Management at Becton Dickinson & Co, Mr. Cassigneul played a crucial role in overseeing the completion of product development, clinical trials, and regulatory submissions. His extensive experience includes top management roles at Bayer, where he spearheaded the diabetes self-testing business unit and launched a new patient-monitoring system; Ortho Diagnostic Systems (Johnson & Johnson), where he introduced a comprehensive line of blood screening products for AIDS and hepatitis; and Abbott Laboratories, where he was instrumental in launching the first HIV test for screening the European blood supply.
Beyond his corporate achievements, Mr. Cassigneul serves on the boards of various companies and non-profit organizations, contributing his expertise to drive innovation and growth. He holds a management degree from the Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Reims (now NEOMA Business School ) in France.
Anthony Costantino
Dr. Costantino is a board-certified forensic toxicologist and has over 40 years of experience in clinical, forensic, and analytical toxicology.
Dr. Costantino earned a Ph.D. in Forensic Toxicology at the University of Maryland, School of Medicine and is board certified by the American Board of Forensic Toxicology. He received his B.S. in Pharmacy and an M.S. in Pharmacology/Toxicology from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is considered a thought leader in the field of toxicology and has authored over 30 scientific publications.
Dr. Costantino has served on numerous corporate and advisory boards and has served the SAMHSA Center for Drug Abuse Prevention’s Drug Testing Advisory Board (DTAB). The SAMHSA program often sets the precedent for other testing in the field of toxicology. He is a former President of the Society of Forensic Toxicologists, Inc. (SOFT), an organization composed of practicing forensic toxicologists that are interested in the discipline of promoting and developing forensic toxicology. Dr. Costantino is also a Fellow of the American Board of Forensic Toxicology (ABFT) and currently serves on the faculty of the Medical Review Officer Certification Council (MROCC). MROCC trains and certifies physicians to review drug testing results for the Federal Workplace Drug Testing Program.
He was the President, CEO and Laboratory Director of DRUGSCAN, Inc. in Horsham, Pennsylvania from 2008-2020
Prior to DRUGSCAN, Dr. Costantino was Vice President of Operations at NMS Labs, a national reference toxicology laboratory. From 1991 to 2002, he was Senior Vice President and Director of Toxicology with American Medical Laboratories (AML), now Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute, where he was responsible for the clinical and forensic toxicology laboratory business units including a SAMHSA certified laboratory. Dr. Costantino is currently an Assistant Professor in Forensic Science in the graduate program at Arcadia University and adjunct faculty at Thomas Jefferson University where he teaches a graduate level class in Interpretative Forensic Toxicology. Dr. Costantino also consults with the toxicology laboratory industry as President of Costantino Consulting Services, Inc.
Barry Logan, Advisor
Dr. Barry Logan is Sr. V/P of Forensic Sciences, and Chief Scientist at NMS Labs. He joined NMS Labs in 2008. He is also Executive Director at the non-profit Center for Forensic Science Research and Education (CFSRE) at the Fredric Rieders Family Foundation in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania. At NMS Labs he leads our team of forensic toxicologists and certifying scientists and is the laboratory director for NMS Criminalistics Laboratories in Pennsylvania, Texas and North Carolina.
Dr. Logan is a Fellow of the American Board of Forensic Toxicologists (ABFT), and has over 150 publications and over 600 presentations in forensic toxicology and analytical chemistry, including work on the effects of illicit and prescription drugs on drivers, and drug caused and related death. His current research priorities are focused on new drug trends, the opioid crisis, rapid reporting of drug mortality data, and the analytical and interpretive toxicology and chemistry of novel psychoactive substances, founding www.NPSDiscovery.org in 2018.
Dr. Logan’s other appointments include Executive Director of the Robert F. Borkenstein course at Indiana University, and at Arcadia University and Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. He serves on the Advisory Board for NIDA’s National Drug Early Warning System (NDEWS). In recognition of his work and contributions, Dr. Logan has received numerous national and international awards and served as President of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences (AAFS) in 2013-14.
MJ Menendez, Advisor
MJ is the Executive Director and a Senior Fellow at the CFSRE, and in 2024 also became the Executive Vice President of the National Association of Medical Examiners (NAME). Before joining CFSRE, she served as General Counsel for NMS Labs. M.J. began her legal career as a prosecutor the District Attorney’s Office in Gilpin and Jefferson Counties, Colorado and returned to the jurisdiction to serve as a District Court Judge in Jefferson County, presiding over criminal, civil, family law, and dependency and neglect proceedings from 2006 to 2009. She was responsible for the creation and implementation of Jefferson County’s Controlled Substance Recovery Court. Subsequently, she took a position as an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Colorado where she served for ten years, prosecuting crimes involving national and international drug distribution and money laundering networks, and violent crimes. She also worked on detail in the USDOJ Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) in Washington, D.C., where she was the Fentanyl and Heroin Major Projects Coordinator.
Rob Middleberg, Advisor
Dr. Robert A. Middleberg is the Core Laboratory Director and Sr. Vice President of Quality Assurance and Regulatory Affairs at NMS Labs. He earned his Ph.D. in Pharmacology from Thomas Jefferson University and a Master’s Degree in Chemistry from the University of Pittsburgh. He is a Fellow of the American Board of Forensic Toxicology (F-ABFT) and a Diplomate in Toxicological Chemistry from the American Board of Clinical Chemistry (DABCC-TC). Dr. Middleberg is a faculty member at Thomas Jefferson University. He holds a position on the Board of Directors for the American Board of Forensic Toxicology and served previously as a Director on the American Board of Clinical Chemistry. Dr. Middleberg was awarded the Rolla N. Harger award in 2013 for contributions to forensic toxicology by the Toxicology Section of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences. He is a member of many professional organizations, including the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, the American Association for Clinical Chemistry and the International Association of Therapeutic Drug Monitoring and Clinical Toxicology. Dr. Middleberg was a long-standing member of the College of American Pathologists’ Toxicology Committee and now serves as an advisor and currently sits on the Editorial Board for the Journal of Forensic Sciences.
Ashutosh Shastry, advisor
Market Development and Commercializtion Advisory Board
Dr. Ashutosh Shastry is a seasoned executive and technologist who specializes in building multidisciplinary teams and developing innovative solutions across diagnostics, drug delivery, and advanced sensing. Currently serving as Senior Director of Engineering at Picarro, he leads engineers and scientists in developing cutting-edge trace gas sensing technologies. As founding CTO at Evanostics, he built a complete team from the ground up and developed an integrated diagnostics platform encompassing cartridge-based testing using evanescent wave sensing from silicon nitride (SiN) waveguides, sophisticated reader instrumentation, advanced analytics, and comprehensive cloud software solutions. He also designed scalable manufacturing processes and pilot line operations, translating cutting-edge photonic biosensing research into commercially viable diagnostic systems. His extensive leadership background includes over seven years at Corium International, where he successfully completed Phase 1a and 1b clinical trials, designed pilot line operations with scalable manufacturing capabilities, and contributed to the company’s successful IPO. Additional experience spans advancing DNA sequencing technologies as Engineering Leader at Illumina’s Advanced Platforms Group, transformative biosensing platforms as SVP of Engineering at Siphox Health, and a formative role at iNDx LifeCare. With a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering and degrees in Chemical Engineering from IIT Bombay, he has published extensively, holds over fifteen patents, and serves in advisory roles with UCLA’s Bioengineering Department, NIH, and NSF review panels.”
Gerry Wagner, advisor
Dr. Gerald Wagner founded GWC LLC in 2002 after 30 years at Bayer, consulting for Fortune 50 companies, large organizations like the Gates Foundation, and various startups. His firm focuses on international project management and technology solutions, generating products with up to $100 million in annual revenue. GWC also evaluates investment opportunities, having assessed 22 projects for Bayerische Landesbank and collaborated with firms like AT Kearney and PwC.
Mr. Wagner earned his PhD from Darmstadt Technical University and began his career in 1974 with Bayer’s Agfa subsidiary. He led initiatives in Quality Engineering and Materials Management and served as Managing Director of Staeble GmbH, the top developer of reprographic lenses. Promoted to General Manager of Industrial Products, he laid the groundwork for Agfa HealthCare’s modular equipment line.
In 1988, he moved to the U.S. to lead Agfa Matrix, becoming head of Agfa’s U.S. HealthCare branch and global R&D. He played a key role in Agfa’s laser imaging innovations.
In 1992, Mr. Wagner joined Bayer’s Diagnostics division, restructuring its plants and integrating Chiron Diagnostics. Under his leadership, Bayer’s Lab Testing business reached $800 million in revenue.
He has served on multiple boards, including MelaSciences Inc. and Integragen SA, and completed two IPOs in the U.S. and EU. Currently, he continues to work on supervisory and advisory boards in both regions and holds dual U.S. and German citizenship.