September 23, 2015 – Microbiome Insights, Inc. is pleased to announce today the formation of its inaugural Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). The board is comprised of leaders in the field whose work has led to significant breakthroughs in both basic and clinical understandings of the microbiome.

The inaugural members are:

• Ken Croitoru, MD, gastroenterologist at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, Canada. His research focuses on the fundamental mechanisms underlying intestinal inflammation, particularly as it relates to inflammatory bowel disease. He is the project leader of the GEM Project, a study that explores the genetic, environmental, and microbial factors that lead to Crohn’s disease.

• Curtis Huttenhower, PhD, Associate Professor of computation biology and bioinformatics at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His research leverages computational methods, including machine learning, to investigate microbial community function and human health. He and his lab have worked extensively on the NIH Human Microbiome Project.

• Janet Jansson, PhD, Division Director of Biological Sciences at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Washington. She has over 30 years’ experience in microbial ecology with specific expertise in the use of molecular approaches to study complex microbial communities in the environment and human gut.

• Samuel Miller, MD, Professor of medicine, microbiology, immunology, and genome sciences at the University of Washington. His research focuses on how bacteria cause disease and interact with host cells. He is also Director of the NIAID Northwest Research Center for Excellence in Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases.

The board, whose mission is to provide scientific, strategic, and technical guidance for Microbiome Insights’ service business and other projects, is co-chaired by founders Brett Finlay, PhD, and Bill Mohn, PhD.

"We are thrilled to have assembled this world class team to guide us," said Malcolm Kendall, CEO of Microbiome Insights. "This Scientific Advisory Board draws upon the best and brightest in microbial ecology, bioinformatics and medicine, and their collective breadth and depth of experience will be crucial to all aspects of our business."

Microbiome Insights, Inc. is a Vancouver-based company that provides state-of-the-art testing and analysis of the microbiome—the complex communities of bacteria, viruses, and fungi that inhabit humans, animals, plants, and the environment. It provides end-to-end service for researchers in academia and industry who wish to incorporate microbiome research in their studies across a range of human, animal, agricultural, and environmental applications.