Board of Directors
Misha Plam, Chair
Prior to AmideBio Misha was President & CEO of BiOptix, commercial provider of a novel Surface Plasmon Resonance-enhanced Common Path Interferometer system platform used for the detection of molecular interactions. In addition, Misha founded and served as Chairman, President and CEO of Sievers Instruments, an analytical instrument company acquired by General Electric (NYSE: GE). In 1997, Misha was selected as the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur-of-the-Year (Rocky Mountain Region) and was also named Entrepreneur of Distinction at Esprit '97 Boulder (Colorado). Misha is an Academician of the Russian Academy of Engineering, one of only 77 foreign members of this prestigious organization. Misha received an advanced degree in Glaciology from Moscow State University (Russia). He currently serves as an Adjunct Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Colorado, Boulder and is a member of both the Advisory Board at The University of Colorado Center for Entrepreneurship and the US-Russia Center for Entrepreneurship.
Michael Stowell, Ph.D., Director
Dr. Stowell is an Associate Professor of Molecular Biology and Mechanical Engineering at the University of Colorado, Boulder and has authored a wide range of publications in the fields of synthetic organic chemistry, structural biology, neurobiology, and biophysics. Dr. Stowell has received numerous grants and awards including the Beckman Young Investigator Award, a National Institutes of Health - EUREKA award, and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute - Collaborative Innovation Award. Dr. Stowell received his Ph.D. in Chemistry and Biophysics from the California Institute of Technology and was a visiting Scientist at the MRC - Laboratory of Molecular Biology (Cambridge, England) and the Biophysics Department of Kyoto University.
R.C. “Merc” Mercure, Jr., Director
Dr. Mercure has 57 years experience in high-technology management and investing and currently serves on the Boards of three public companies listed on the NYSE as well as a number of private companies. Most recently he co-founded CDM Optics, which was acquired by OmniVision Technologies (Nasdaq: OVTI). Prior to that, Dr. Mecure co-founded Ball Brothers Research Corporation, which is now Ball Aerospace Colorado. After retiring from Ball Brothers Research Corp., Dr. Mercure founded Colorado Venture Management. Dr. Mecure also serves as a Director of a number of non-profit entities including the Boulder Innovation Center, eSpace, and the University License Equity Holding, Inc.; serves as President of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research Foundation; is Managing Director, Optoelectronic Computing Systems Center at the National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center; sits on the Technology Transfer Advisory Board of the Colorado School of Mines, and is a member of the External Advisory Board and the Engineering Advisory Board at the University of Colorado at Boulder, College of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Dr. Mecure holds a Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Colorado.
Greg Abbott, Director
Mr. Abbott has over 25 years experience serving as Director, Chief Executive Officer and company officer of numerous biotech companies including Synergen and Darwin Molecular. He is also a corporate and finance attorney and has been a partner with the Silicon Valley law firm of Cooley Godward, for which he co-founded a branch office in Kirkland, Washington. As a partner with Holme Roberts & Owen in Colorado, he also co-founded a branch office in Boulder, Colorado. Mr. Abott has worked for many years as a biotech industry consultant and expert witness in biotech and technology licensing litigation. Today his legal practice is devoted to volunteer work through the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, where he serves on its Board of Directors as well as the Board of College Access Now, which assists first-generation, low income applicants attend college. Mr. Abbott holds a B.A. from Yale, a J.D. from the University of Denver, Sturm College of Law, and has been a Fulbright Scholar in law in Moscow, Russia.
Niles F. Utlaut, Director
Dr. Utlaut has been practicing medicine for over 33 years. He is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Ophthalmology, studied at the National Eye Institute, was a researcher at Moorfields Hospital, London, served on the faculty at Stanford University and, acted as Attending Physician to the Royal Family of Saudi Arabia. Dr. Utlaut held prior posts as President of the Colorado Business Coalition for Health, Director of the Royal Hospital at Taif, Saudi Arabia; and, on the Board of Directors for Magpie Healthcare and Avivid Business Solutions. Dr. Utlaut was Valedictorian in Mathematics at the University of Colorado, and holds a M.D. from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
David L. Barker, Ph.D., Director
Dr. Barker currently serves on the Boards of Directors of BioNanomatrix, Integrated Diagnostics, IntegenX Inc., ProteinSimple, and NextBio, and is a scientific advisor to Illumina, Diagnostics for the Real World, and BiOptix. He was Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer at Illumina, Inc., from 2000 through 2006. Dr. Barker served from 1998 to 2000 as Vice President and Chief Science Advisor at Amersham Biosciences, now part of General Electric. From 1988 to 1998, Dr. Barker held senior positions, including Vice President of Research and Business Development, at Molecular Dynamics, Inc., until the acquisition of Molecular Dynamics by Amersham. Dr. Barker holds a BS with honors in Chemistry from the California Institute of Technology and a PhD in Biochemistry from Brandeis University.
Scientific Advisory Board
Marvin Caruthers, Ph.D.
Marvin H. Caruthers, Ph.D., is a Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Colorado and a pioneer in the biotechnology field. One of the co-founders of Amgen and Applied Biosystems, Dr. Caruthers’ groundbreaking scientific research in nucleic acid chemistry led to the development of DNA synthesizing techniques that remain the industry standard today. Dr. Caruthers is also a founding investor in miRagen Therapeutics and member of the Board. Dr. Caruthers holds a B.S. in Chemistry from Iowa State University and a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Northwestern University. A Guggenheim Fellow, he is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Dr. Caruthers was awarded the National Medal of Science for 2006, the nation’s highest distinction honoring scientific achievement.
Thomas Keuer
Mr. Keuer brings over 30 years of technical expertise in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, including leadership positions with Arca biopharma, Insmed, Baxter International, Somatogen and Monsanto. In his current position with ARCA, Tom has overall responsibility for the company’s technical development programs in the chemistry, manufacturing and controls (CMC) area, and also serves as the head of project management. Prior to ARCA, he was Senior Vice President of Insmed Therapeutic Proteins, with responsibility for all process development and manufacturing programs at the company, including leadership of the GMP manufacturing site in Boulder, CO. Prior to Insmed, Tom was Vice President of Engineering for Baxter International’s Bioscience Division, a position that involved global responsibility for all capital projects related to manufacturing of biotechnology products. Tom also served as Vice President of Manufacturing for Somatogen, Inc, a Boulder-based biotechnology company. He received his Masters of Science in Biochemical Engineering from Rice University as a Monsanto–sponsored delegate.
