John G. Auniņš
Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Seres Therapeutics, Inc.
This award is co-sponsored by the Society for Biological Engineers.
Session Chair:
- Georges Belfort, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
In appreciation of Prof. Daniel I.C. Wang’s contributions to education and research in biochemical engineering as well as his technological innovations in bioprocessing. This award has been established by the Society for Biological Engineering. The award will be presented to a distinguished biochemical engineer and biotechnologist by the Biochemical Technology Division of the American Chemical Society and by the Food, Pharmaceuticals and Bioengineering Division of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and the Society of Biological Engineering.
The 2018 D.I.C. Wang Award Lecture will be presented by John G. Auniņš.
Lessons from a Life in Biopharma
John G. Auniņš, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Seres Therapeutics, Inc.
The application of biochemical engineering to the development of biopharmaceuticals may classically be viewed as adherence to principles of thermodynamics, reaction engineering, transport, biology, biochemistry, and myriad smaller subjects; there are many lessons to be gleaned from these applications. In the setting of a corporate enterprise, other factors come into play, in particular philosophies of engineering and the need for teams to accomplish the work, as governed by more senior engineers and non-engineers. In this talk I will recap my journey through the development of many products and technologies for vaccines and biologicals, illustrating not only the ‘what’ was accomplished, but also the ‘why’ it was done in the way it was. This will perhaps give some lessons for the future of a most interesting new chapter of creating “Bugs as Drugs”, an emerging therapeutic modality for treatment of diseases that are caused by or exacerbated by the bacteria inhabiting the human body.
Supported by the AIChE Foundation
