He invented or developed 2 highly successful drugs that sell over $1B globally. Currently he is CMO at Retrotope, managing member Renexxion LLC and CEO Ativo/IL-2Rx. He serves as a member of board of directors of these and other private and public companies. Optivia Biotechnology Inc., which he co-founded in 2007, is the global leader in transporter biology and was sold in 2019 as a profitable service provider for drug discovery to a large US private equity firm Arsenal capital for a multiple of revenue. He previously co-founded ARYx Therapeutics in 1997, where he served as CEO until 2005, and then President from 2005 to 2010, with overall responsibility for R&D. In 1990 Dr Milner co-founded CV Therapeutics, where as a member of senior management from 1992 to 1996 he licensed and co-invented several successful pharmaceuticals. Dr Milner took both CV Therapeutics and ARYx Therapeutics public on NASDAQ and CV Therapeutics was acquired by Gilead for $1.5 billion in 2009.
Earlier in his career, Dr Milner was an Assistant Professor of medicine and molecular genetics at Washington University in St Louis. His research led to the discovery of pleiotrophin (PTN), a novel growth factor that regulates stem cell differentiation, organ development, and the epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT). After completing his undergraduate studies at the University of Liverpool, Dr Milner completed his postgraduate training at Johns Hopkins Hospital, University of Virginia, and Washington University in St Louis.
He is co-inventor on almost 67 issued patents, an author of 33 original scientific articles and a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology (FACC). In addition, he has served as adjunct clinical faculty at Stanford University School of Medicine and as a board member of the California Healthcare Institute (CHI). In 2012 Dr Milner was recognized as EY Entrepreneur of the Year.