Scientific Advisory Board

Dr. Bill Costerton, PhD

Director of Biofilm Research, Center for Genomic Sciences, Allegheny-Singer Research Institute, and Director of Microbial Research, Department of Orthopedics, Allegheny General Hospital. Former Director of the Center for Biofilms, University of Southern California and Former Director, Center for Biofilm Engineering, Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana.

Dr. Costerton is considered to be the foremost expert in biofilm research in the world. He is the defining author in the field of biofilms, and is aware of virtually every recent development in both the industrial and the medical applications of biofilm technology. Dr. Costerton was the Director of the Center for Biofilm Engineering at Montana State University for over a decade, and he is considered most responsible for advancing the awareness of biofilms in industry, health sciences, and in society. He is the most prolific author in the field of biofilms, and is a widely sought-after speaker on this subject.

Dr. David Dolphin, PhD

Former Vice-President, Technology Development, Quadra Logic Technologies, and Professor Emeritus, University of British Columbia.

Dr. David Dolphin is a highly accomplished chemist. Along with Dr. Julia Levy, he played a key role in the development of QLT's proprietary light-activated compounds. He completed his post-Doctoral training under the Nobel Prize-winning chemist, Dr. R.B. Woodward. He is one of the world's leading organic chemists, specializing in bioorganic and inorganic chemistry, including porphyrins, and Vitamin B12. He is a specialist in spectrophotometric analysis and photoreactive compounds. He is a winner of the Heroes of Chemistry Award in 2004, and former Vice President of Research at the University of British Columbia. He provides valuable chemistry, FDA-regulatory, business, and corporate expertise.

Dr. Philip Domenico, PhD

Senior Scientist, Microbion Corporation, and Former Research Director, Infectious Disease Division, Winthrop-University Hospital, New York

Dr. Domenico is an expert in chemical formulation and microbiology. He is widely published in the scientific literature relating to infectious disease. He is the inventor of the patented BT compounds to which we have an Exclusive License and Option Agreement, and his interest in working with Microbion as a means to bring these compounds to the marketplace is keen. He contributes key chemical and microbiological knowledge related to the BTs.

Dr. Barry Hafkin, MD

Chief Medical Officer, Affinium Pharmaceuticals

Dr. Hafkin, an accomplished pharmaceutical executive, brings more than 16 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries to Microbion. He has served as the Principal Investigator on over 350 pharmacokinetic and safety studies. As Senior Director of Antibacterial Development and later the therapeutic area leader at Pharmacia, Dr. Hafkin led the successful global development and registration of Zyvox™, an antibiotic specifically designed to address multiple drug resistant bacterial infections (an application that BTs are also capable of addressing). The product now marketed by Pfizer has been widely embraced by the medical communities throughout the world; sales for Zyvox™ are estimated to be $900 million and growing by 30% per year.

Dr. Jon Nagy, PhD

Dr. Nagy has held management positions with Dow Chemical and Chevron's Ortho Research Division. In 1990, Dr. Nagy joined Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) as a staff scientist and became part of the Material Science Division and Life Sciences Division. Dr. Nagy joined LigoCyte Pharmaceuticals in Montana, as Director of Chemistry and as Principal Investigator for a $2.7 million dollar NIH grant designed to implement and advance the nanoparticle treatment for asthma. Dr. Nagy is the co-author on 28 scientific publications and 10 issued patents. Dr. Nagy contributes his SBIR expertise and advanced chemical expertise to Microbion.

Dr. Michael Kelly, MD, PhD, FRCP

President and owner of Seatek Marine Biotechnology, Inc.

Dr. Kelly has written more than 100 articles published in medical and scientific journals. Dr. Kelly is interested in the potential development of a strategic alliance (with Ocean Pharmaceuticals) for novel combination BT-antibiotic compounds. Dr. Kelly contributes a world-class, in-depth knowledge of antibiotics and their function, expertise in human pathology, and potential for formation of a strategic alliance for development of combined therapeutic products.

Dr. Dean Shinabarger, PhD

Dr. Shinabarger has 16 years of antimicrobial discovery and development experience with Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals, Pharmacia Corporation and Micromyx. While at Pharmacia, Dr. Shinabarger was responsible for elucidating the mechanism of action and resistance of the antibiotic Zyvox™, the first totally new antibiotic class approved in over 30 years. He was chosen to be a member of the Zyvox™ Development Team that presented this important new antibiotic to the FDA advisory committee in April 2000 and worked extensively with the Pharmacia marketing group to introduce Zyvox™ to physicians around the world. Dr. Shinabarger served as the team leader for discovering new antibiotics, managing a multidisciplinary team of 40 scientists. He also identified, contracted, and managed three important collaborations with academic researchers, and served on several teams that sought CROs for genomics and high-throughput screening projects. Dr. Shinabarger served as a member of the Pharmacia Research Leadership Team, contributing to the review and selection of compounds for drug development.

Mr. Gary Zurenko, MS

Mr. Zurenko has over 30 years experience in antimicrobial research at The Upjohn Company, Pharmacia and Micromyx. While at Upjohn/ Pharmacia, he was a principal scientific contributor to the successful introduction of the following antimicrobial agents: Cleocin T™ (acne), Cleocin Vaginal Cream™ (bacterial vaginosis), Zefazone™ (surgical prophylaxis), Vantin™ (respiratory infections), and Zyvox™ (lifethreatening Gram-positive infections). A notable accomplishment was being one of three founding scientists for the Upjohn oxazolidinone program, which ultimately led to the discovery, development, and regulatory approval of Zyvox™. Mr. Zurenko directed or contracted all of the microbiological studies required to gain FDA approval of the drug. During the Zyvox™ development process, Mr. Zurenko also served as the Regulatory Filing Team Representative for Pharmacia Discovery Research. In that capacity he was responsible for the preparation of the Microbiology section of the NDA (5000 pages) and EU Dossier, presentation of the microbiology data in all global regulatory agency venues (including the FDA Advisory Hearing), and negotiating the Microbiology portion of the Zyvox™ package insert.

Dr. Randall Wolcott, MD, CWS

Dr. Wolcott is a recognized leader in the anti-biofilm approach to the clinical treatment of chronic wounds, and has a strong relationship with the Center for Biofilm Engineering at MSU in Bozeman, Montana. He is Director of the Southwest Regional Wound Care Center in Texas.

Mr. David Preston, MS

Mr. Preston has held management positions in the Infectious Diseases Research Division at Eli Lilly for 29 years, where he has been involved in the discovery and clinical development of antibacterial antibiotics. He also worked for Eli Lilly for 3 years in their global marketing team. He is a respected scientific author, with many antibiotic development-related scientific publications to his credit.