Ghent, Belgium – Biotalys (Euronext - BTLS), an Agricultural Technology (AgTech) company protecting crops and food with protein-based biocontrol solutions, announced the establishment of a Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) that will support the company’s continued growth, accelerate product pipeline efforts and deepen scientific partnership initiatives. Timed with its official creation, Biotalys also announced the appointment of Dr. Claude Bensoussan, Dr. Hans-Jürgen Rosslenbroich and Dr. Ioannis Stergiopoulos to the SAC.
“As we actively scale in preparation for global commercialization, we are committed to bringing together the best scientific minds in the industry to broaden our continued innovation and properly direct our product development,” said Patrice Sellès, CEO of Biotalys. “Our newly established advisory committee brings together leading scientists and industry experts to continue to set the pace for safer, more sustainable solutions to better protect crops from field to plate.”
The Scientific Advisory Committee will work directly with the company’s Board of Directors and manage a variety of scientific topics. Joining the four high-profile industry leaders who have provided counsel to Biotalys until now – namely Dr. Adrian Percy, Dr. Jacqui Campbell, Dr. Daniel Joo, and Dr. Franz-Josef Placke – the newly appointed advisors will add their expertise detailed below to Biotalys’ ongoing scientific endeavors:
Dr. Claude Bensoussan – An industrial biotechnology expert, Dr. Bensoussan currently serves as CEO of BioAdvice, which provides consulting services for leaders in the bioprocess and biotechnology communities. With a PhD. in molecular pharmaco-chemistry, he brings decades of operational experience across the pharmaceutical and chemical industries to his role on the Biotalys SAC, where he will provide counsel on industrial-scale protein manufacturing. Dr. Bensoussan has driven the development and industrialization of numerous bioprocesses spanning the pharmaceutical, agrochemical, cosmetics, and nutraceuticals arenas. A highly acclaimed author, he is an active advisor to the biotechnology community.
Dr. Hans-Jürgen Rosslenbroich – Previously serving as the Head of Disease Management in Agronomic Development for Bayer Crop Science, Dr. Rosslenbroich has a long history of disease management product development, both biologicals and chemicals. He brings exceptional expertise in plant pathogens and disease-crop biology to his role on the SAC to drive the development and positioning of fungicides for disease control and safeguarding plant health. In the recent past, Dr. Rosslenbroich has been providing advice to Biotalys on Evoca – Biotalys’ first biofungicide – including its mode of action, field trial data analysis and plant compatibility questions.
Dr. Ioannis Stergiopoulos – An associate professor at the University of California, Davis (UC Davis), focused on genetics, genomics, and evolution of plant-microbe interactions, Dr. Stergiopoulos has dedicated his career to understanding microbial virulence and multi-drug resistance mechanisms in fungal plant pathogens, and to translating this knowledge into effective intervention strategies for disease control. In his role on the Biotalys SAC, he will bring a unique perspective on the molecular mechanisms governing fungal pathogenesis on plants and resistance to antifungal agents. In his research, Dr. Stergiopoulos follows a systems biology-based approach that integrates comparative and functional genomics, with molecular evolutionary analyses, and practical field work. Prior to joining UC Davis, Dr. Stergiopoulos was appointed as a post-doctoral fellow at Vanderbilt University (Department of Biological Sciences) and at Wageningen University (Department of Plant Pathology), where he had earned his PhD.
In close alignment with the Biotalys executive team and scientists throughout the organization, SAC members will meet regularly to provide scientific and industry-specific direction on initiatives tied to their scientific domain, including the research and development platform, fungicides, bactericides, and insecticides. Dr. Adrian Percy, an accomplished agricultural industry leader and Executive Director of NC Plant Sciences Initiative, will be Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Committee.
More information can be found on www.biotalys.com.