Microbia Precision Engineering

Richard Bailey, Ph.D. CEO: Rich Bailey serves as the chief executive officer of Microbia Precision Engineering. He has led the Precision Engineering business since joining Microbia in 2002. Prior to joining Microbia, Bailey was vice president of research and development in Monsanto's nutrition division. Bailey has over 30 years of experience focusing on the development of biomanufacturing processes for specialty chemicals through the genetic manipulation of microbes to optimize productivity. He has been involved in several successful product introductions including riboflavin (Vitamin B2), essential omega-3 fatty acids (docosahexanoic acid), specialty biopolymers, and amino acids. Bailey earned a B.S. in bacteriology from Washington State University and holds a Ph.D. in microbial physiology from Oregon State University. He currently serves on the board of directors for the Society of Industrial Microbiology.
Kevin Madden, Ph.D. Chief Scientific Officer: Kevin Madden serves as vice president of research for Microbia Precision Engineering, and has provided scientific and management leadership in a variety of roles since joining Microbia, Inc. at its formation in 1998. He is currently responsible for managing the Company’s research and for ensuring integration of technical and business strategies. Previously, Madden performed post-doctoral research at Millennium Pharmaceuticals. He earned a B.A. in biology from the University of Pennsylvania and a Ph.D. in biology from Yale University. His research has received several acknowledgements, including an HHMI Predoctoral Fellowship and recognition as the outstanding doctoral candidate in experimental zoology.
Joshua Trueheart, Ph.D. Senior Director: Josh Trueheart serves as Microbia Precision Engineering’s senior director of research. He is responsible for directing the scientific efforts undertaken in support of the Microbe Collaboration with Tate & Lyle, and also provides technical leadership across all projects for molecular genetic strategies. Starting in 1999, Trueheart was an early employee of Microbia, Inc. and was involved in several of its original discovery projects. With Microbia PE, he has been instrumental in developing the Company’s approach to microbial pathway engineering. During his 14-year professional career, Trueheart has participated in and managed diverse research projects, and is well known for his scientific contributions in the field of GPCR signaling as a target for pharmaceutical candidate development, and for his development of novel approaches to engineering microbial regulatory and biosynthetic networks. Prior to joining Microbia PE, Trueheart spent six years at Cadus Pharmaceuticals. He holds a B.S. in biological sciences from Stanford University and a Ph.D. in genetics and microbiology from the Department of Biology at MIT, where he studied cell fusion during yeast conjugation in the laboratory of Dr. Gerald Fink.
Peter Yorgey, Ph.D. Director: Pete Yorgey serves as a director of Microbia Precision Engineering, where he is responsible for managing all service partnerships. Yorgey joined the therapeutics division of Microbia, Inc. in 2000, where he initially contributed to its efforts to develop drug candidates for controlling biofilm formation and inhibition of cholesterol absorption. Since 2003 he has devoted his efforts to driving one of Microbia PE’s key collaborations and he moved into his current directorial position in 2006. Over his academic and industrial career, Yorgey has worked with a diverse range of microbes including marine psychrophiles, industrially important actinomycetes such as Streptomyces and Corynebacterium, and a variety of bacterial pathogens. Yorgey holds a B.A. degree in biology from Gordon College, an M.S. in marine microbiology from Oregon State University, and a Ph.D. in microbiology and molecular genetics from Harvard University.; Gaye Bok, M.B.A., Senior Director, Commercial Development. Gaye Bok joined Microbia PE in 2008 and is leading Microbia Precision Engineering's product commercialization program as well as new product development efforts. Bok brings 13 years experience in business development and new product development in specialty chemicals (Cabot Corporation) and bio-energy (Synthetic Genomics). She earned an A.B. in Social Studies from Harvard University and an M.B.A. in Finance and International Management from MIT's Sloan School of Management. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the Pine Street Inn.; Sam Zeller serves as senior director of regulatory affairs for Microbia Precision Engineering. He is responsible for managing and directing international regulatory affairs and quality assurance for the company. Zeller has over 18 years experience in the food and feed industry working with companies producing nutritional products through the use of modern biotechnology. He held positions with responsibility in the areas of regulatory affairs, quality compliance and research and development He earned a B.A. in chemistry from St. Olaf College and a PhD in chemistry from the University of Minnesota.