POLYBIO - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- MICROBIOME and VIRAL SCIENCE ADVISOR
Dr. Proal is a microbiologist who studies the molecular mechanisms by which bacterial, fungal and viral pathogens dysregulate human gene expression, immunity and metabolism. Her work further examines how dysbiosis of the human microbiome and/or the human virome can contribute to chronic inflammatory disease processes. As a member of the research team at Autoimmunity Research Foundation, she has authored papers and written book chapters for organizations like the J.Craig Venter Institute and The Autoimmunity Network, and lectured at the NIH and numerous USA/international conferences. Proal graduated from Georgetown University in 2005 with a degree in biology. In 2012, she obtained a PhD in microbiology from Murdoch University in Australia. Her graduate thesis focused on "Autoimmune disease re-examined in light of metagenomic concepts."
Job Titles:
- MICROBIAL and METAGENOMIC SCIENCE ADVISOR
David Paez-Espino obtained a Ph.D. in synthetic and molecular biology and biochemistry techniques at the CNB-CSIC in Madrid, Spain, and gained a postdoctoral position at UC Berkeley, USA, for expanding skills in metagenomics, virus-host dynamics, and acquiring programming ability. This work included a collaboration with Danisco USA Inc. (now Dupont), that was attractive to collaborate with the biotech industry.
David also has a strong wet-lab background in molecular biology for bioremediation of contaminated soils and synthetic biology complemented with bio-computational analysis for the last 10 years.
David's top scientific interests are:
Job Titles:
- CLINICAL INFECTIOUS DISEASE SCIENCE ADVISOR
Dr. Charlotte A. Mao, MD, MPH, is a leading physician in pediatric infectious diseases with a special interest in HIV and Lyme/vector-borne illnesses.
Expert in organizational strategy and design. Katie currently works at the intersection of strategy and job quality at Amazon. Previously, she was a director of strategy at Starbucks and a consultant at McKinsey & Company. Katie is also a nonresident fellow at the Brookings Institution, where she has recently focused on the economic impact of LongCovid. She has served on the leadership teams at two nonprofits. Katie has an MBA from MIT Sloan, a Master's Degree from the London School of Economics, and a BA from the University of Oxford.
Kris Fobes is the founder, CEO, and developer of GeneSavvy™, which is the genetic platform that currently powers the PMG™ ecosystem. With only an associates degree in applied science, Kris has continued his education by using online platforms with top schools like Harvard and MIT to gain the knowledge needed to start, build and run companies in bioinformatics, software development, genetic based telemedicine, supplement manufacturing, and primary care practice management. This diverse experience in health care related business along with data science and computer science gives him the unique insight needed to build a fully integrated personalized medicine platform and understand the operational needs within. Kris currently lives in Seattle, WA which allows him to be surrounded by high tech, forward thinking minds which fuels his need to innovate and drive the personalized medicine industry forward. Kris currently suffers from a condition called "Insatiable Curiosity" which has no known cure but can be managed through continuous knowledge acquisition.
Job Titles:
- HUMAN METABOLISM and PATHOGEN SCIENCE ADVISOR
Lena Pernas, PhD, is a leading researcher in the metabolism of infection, mitochondrial dynamics, parasite biology, and microbiology. Lena holds a PhD in microbiology & immunology from Stanford University and completed postoctoral research on the biology and at the University of Padua, Italy.
Maggie Steffens is a 2x Olympic Gold Medalist and Captain of the USA Women's Water Polo team. She is a dedicated leader not only to her team, but also to the sport of water polo and the growth of women in sport. This passion for growth is complimented by her entrepreneurial route with her company, 6-8 Sports, which she co-founded with fellow Olympian, Tony Azevedo. At 6-8 Sports, she focuses on business development & strategy and raising funds for the company to fulfill its mission. Maggie holds a Bachelor in Science in Science, Technology, and Society as well as a Master in Science in Management & Engineering from Stanford University.
Job Titles:
- ASSOCIATED RESPONSE SCIENCE ADVISOR
Marcelo Fiere, DDS, PhD, DMSc, is a leading researcher in infection-associated host response, inflammation biology, transcriptomics, antibody engineering, and the oral microbiome.
Mark Longstreth has over 15 years of experience in the private equity and investment banking industries. He is currently a Partner at Newlight Partners, where he focuses on investments in power and infrastructure. Prior to joining Newlight he worked as Managing Director to its predecessor, the Strategic Investments Group of Soros Fund Management, as an Investment Banking Analyst for Bear Stearns, and as an Analyst for the Royal Bank of Scotland. Mark holds a Bachelor in Science and Foreign Service in International Economics from Georgetown University.
Brings 30 years of experience in nonprofit leadership, social entrepreneurship, and policy development to his role as Principal at Public Purpose Strategies. In 1988, Michael co-founded City Year, a leading national service organization that served as an inspiration for AmeriCorps, the federal initiative through which more than one million Americans have served their country. Michael is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School, where he was a member of the Harvard Law Review.
Job Titles:
- ADVISOR
- NEUROSCIENCE ADVISOR
Instructor, Division of Neurotherapeutics/Neuroimmunologist and expert in persistent central nervous system consequences. Mike uses functional and structural imaging techniques to identify abnormal patterns in brain inflammation and metabolism in patients with infection-associated chronic disease. He received a master's degree in behavioral neuroscience at the University of Colorado and a PhD in experimental clinical psychology at Tufts University.
William Eimer, PhD, is a leading researcher in neuroscience, molecular biology, microbiology, neurodegeneration, immunohistochemistry, and microscopy.