BioLife Solutions, Inc. Announces The Addition Of Jason Acker, MBA, PhD And Anthony Davies, PhD To Its Scientific Advisory Board

BOTHELL, Wash., Sept. 23, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: BLFS), a leading developer, manufacturer and marketer of proprietary clinical grade hypothermic storage and cryopreservation freeze media and precision thermal shipping products for cells and tissues (“BioLife” or the “Company”), today announced two new additions to its Scientific Advisory Board. The new members are Jason Acker, PhD, and Anthony Davies, PhD.

Dr. Acker is a Senior Development Scientist with the Canadian Blood Services and a Professor in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada. He received his Bachelor of Science, Master of Science in Experimental Pathology and PhD in Medical Sciences degrees from the University of Alberta. Dr. Acker was a Canadian Institutes of Health Research Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. He completed his Master of Business Administration in Technology Commercialization program at the Alberta School of Business at the University of Alberta in 2009.

Focusing his research on understanding the biological response of cells to freezing and freeze-drying has allowed Dr. Acker to develop a solid foundation from which he has contributed to the design of new methods for the long-term storage of a number of cell types and tissues. Dr. Acker has received recognition for his work on low temperature cellular injury, cryopreservation and mammalian cell desiccation. Dr. Acker is the President-Elect of the Society for Cryobiology.

Dr. Davies is President of Dark Horse Consulting, a boutique practice focused on CMC and product development issues in cell and gene therapy. After training as a biochemist, chemical engineer and molecular biologist, Dr. Davies has worked in the cell and gene therapy field for some 20 years. He brings with him an extensive track record in manufacturing, operational management and commercial development, most recently as Chief Technology Officer for Capricor, Inc. and Vice President, Product Development for Geron Corporation’s cell therapy programs.

Dr. Davies received a MA in Biochemistry from the University of Cambridge and a PhD from the University of Birmingham. He conducted postdoctoral research at the Institute of Virology at Oxford and the University of California, San Francisco.

Aby J. Mathew, PhD, BioLife Solutions Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, commented on the announcement by stating, “We are pleased that Dr. Acker and Dr. Davies have joined our Scientific Advisory Board. Each brings strong complementary expertise to this group of influential opinion leaders. As we continue to expand the number of clinical customer partners and diversify our portfolio of biopreservation tools, our highly experienced Scientific Advisory Board members provide valuable insight into our growing customer base, as well as awareness of emerging and complementary technologies.”

BioLife’s Scientific Advisory Board is chaired by Dr. Mathew and is comprised of the following members:

• Scott M. Burger, MD, principal of Advanced Cell and Gene Therapy, a consulting firm specializing in cell, gene, and tissue-based therapies. Dr. Burger works with clients in industry and academic centers worldwide, providing assistance in process development and validation, GMP/GTP manufacturing, GMP facility design and operation, regulatory affairs, technology evaluation, and strategic analysis.
• Lizabeth J. Cardwell, MT (ASCP), MBA, RAC, Principal, Compliance Consulting, LLC, a private consulting business offering quality and regulatory consulting services to cell therapy, medical device, and pharmaceutical companies.
• Jerry E. Cooley, MD, is a board certified dermatologist and diplomate of the American Board of Hair Restoration Surgery (ABHRS). He has served in leadership positions including President of the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery (ISHRS) and co-editor of the Hair Transplant Forum, the main journal for hair transplant physicians. He has been performing hair transplants for almost 20 years.
• Colleen Delaney, MD, is the Director of the Cord Blood Research and Transplant Program at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC) and Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA). She is an attending physician at Seattle Children’s Hospital, Assistant Member of the Clinical Research Division of FHCRC and Assistant Professor at the University of Washington School of Medicine.
• Dayong Gao, PhD, professor of biomedical engineering at the University of Washington in Seattle. Dr. Gao has been actively engaged in cryopreservation research for more than 20 years, having authored over 130 peer-reviewed journal articles on cryopreservation.
• Shelly Heimfeld, PhD, is the Director, Heimfeld Research Laboratory, Scientific Director, Cellular Therapy Laboratory, and Scientific Director, cGMP Therapeutic Manufacturing Facilities at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and former President of the International Society of Cellular Therapy. Dr. Heimfeld is internationally recognized for research in hematopoietic-derived stem cells and the development of cell processing technologies for improved cancer therapy.
• Andrew Hinson, Vice President for Clinical and Regulatory Affairs for LoneStar Heart, Inc., a developer of proprietary biopolymer, small molecule and cellular-based therapies to effectively treat heart failure and other cardiac conditions. Mr. Hinson has diverse experience in the cell and gene therapy markets and extensive experience with regulatory and clinical trial issues for new therapies for cardiac, neurologic, and gastrointestinal applications.
• Edward LeCluyse, PhD, Senior Research Investigator at The Hamner Institutes for Health Sciences. Dr. LeCluyse pioneered the use of HypoThermosol^® and CryoStor^® in improving preservation of research designated livers and derived commercial hepatocytes marketed to the pharmaceutical industry.
• John McMannis, PhD, Executive Vice President of Manufacturing at Mesoblast Limited. Dr. McMannis was previously the Director, Cellular Therapy Laboratory, Department of Stem Cell Transplantation, Division of Cancer Medicine, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
• Robert (Bob) A. Preti, PhD, President & Chief Scientific Officer at PCT, a NeoStem Company. Dr. Preti is the co-founder and visionary behind PCT’s successful growth and development strategy over much of the last two decades. As Chief Scientific Officer of NeoStem, Bob is involved in directing the development and expansion of NeoStem’s cell therapy pipeline, as well as participating in setting NeoStem’s strategic direction. Bob holds a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from Fordham University, and a Master of Science degree and Doctorate, both in biology, from New York University
• Jon Rowley, PhD, Chief Executive & Technology Officer at RoosterBio, Inc. Dr. Rowley founded RoosterBio as part of his personal quest to significantly improve commercial translation of technologies that incorporate living cells, including cellular therapies, engineered tissues, and tomorrow’s medical devices. Jon holds a PhD from the University of Michigan in Biomedical Engineering and has authored over 30 peer reviewed manuscripts and 15 issued or pending patents related to biomaterials development, tissue engineering, and cellular therapy. Prior to RoosterBio, Jon created innovative products at BD, Aastrom Bioscience, and most recently, was Director of Innovation and Process Development at Lonza’s Cell Therapy CMO business.
• Erik J. Woods, PhD, Co-Founder, CEO of General Biotechnology, LLC, now Cook General BioTechnology, a subsidiary of Cook Group. Dr. Woods is the current President of the Society for Cryobiology.

About BioLife Solutions

BioLife Solutions develops, manufactures and markets hypothermic storage and cryopreservation solutions and precision thermal shipping products for cells, tissues, and organs. BioLife also performs contract aseptic media formulation, fill, and finish services. The Company’s proprietary HypoThermosol^® and CryoStor^® platform of solutions are highly valued in the biobanking, drug discovery, and regenerative medicine markets. BioLife’s biopreservation media products are serum-free and protein-free, fully defined, and are formulated to reduce preservation-induced cell damage and death. BioLife’s enabling technology provides commercial companies and clinical researchers significant improvement in shelf-life and post-preservation viability and function of cells, tissues, and organs. For more information please visit www.biolifesolutions.com, and follow BioLife on Twitter.

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements concerning our potential revenue growth, market size and market expansion. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements. These statements are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements, including among other things, uncertainty regarding market adoption of our products; market volatility; competition; litigation; and those other factors described in our risk factors set forth in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. We undertake no obligation to update the forward-looking statements contained herein or to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date hereof, other than as may be required by applicable law.

SOURCE BioLife Solutions, Inc.