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Michael D. Lynch
Chief Scientific Officer
OPXBIO
Rapid Optimization of Bioprocesses for the
Cost Superior Production of Bio-Based Chemicals
Monday, September 13, 2010
1:30 - 2:00 pm
Abstract:
As the demand for
fuels and chemicals
continues to
increase, the
biological
production of
products from
renewable feedstocks
has become a means
of supplementing or
even replacing a
number of
traditionally
petroleum-based
products. This
growing field of
bio-refining relies
upon the use of
microorganisms to
convert renewable
carbon sources into
higher value
products.
Previously,
bio-refining
processes have
sought to either
exploit the native
biosynthetic
pathways of specific
micro-organisms to
produce valuable
chemicals or have
relied upon genetic
engineering of
micro-organisms to
produce non-natural
products. Commercial
bio-processes have
then been designed
around these
organisms, which are
often costly due to
the complex
requirements of the
microorganisms
themselves. OPXBIO
has developed
several new
high-resolution and
comprehensive
genomics tools that
can be used to
optimize industrial
organisms and has
applied these
methods to construct
several robust host
microorganisms. In
particular, OPXBIO
has applied these
strain engineering
tools towards the
economical
production of
3-hydroxypropionic
acid, which is a
bio-product with
several valuable
market applications
including the $7
Billion acrylic acid
market. Our platform
technology has
facilitated the
construction of
microbial strains
that are capable of
producing
commercially
relevant titers of
3-hydroxypropionic
acid in inexpensive
growth conditions,
which will enable a
cost competitive
bio-processing route
to acrylic acid.
Biography
Michael Lynch received his B.S. and M.S. in Biomedical Engineering and an A.B. in Anthropology from Washington University in Saint Louis in 2000. He then went on to complete an M.D. and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Colorado in 2007. He was the founding scientist of OPXBIO in 2007 and currently serves as the Chief Scientific Officer. Michael was the primary inventor of the EDGE technology platform platform that allows rapid assessment and engineering of robust strains for industrial biotechnology.. His work comprises the development of quantitative methodologies for strain engineering (SCALES), improved cloning tools with broad host range capabilities, and whole cell metabolic engineering strategies for the
production of renewable fuels and chemicals. His innovative research has resulted in thirteen patent applications and seven publications since 2004.
