Ecolyse, Inc.

Our Team

• James Y. Lancaster, CEO/Chairman - With an extensive background advising entrepreneurs and early-stage companies, James has co-founded three technology companies and an angel fund, and serves as a board member or advisor to other start-up businesses. His experience includes bootstrapped, angel investor and venture capital-backed businesses, as well as Fortune 500 clients such as Alcatel, Allied Signal, Ericsson, Bridgestone/Firestone, Haliburton, Herman Miller, Honeywell, Sonoco and Trinity. He holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from Texas A&M and a master's degree in business administration from the University of Texas at Austin.
• Neil Summer, PhD, President/Founder, General Manager, Petrocontrol Division - Neil has over 35 years of experience in the oil & gas industry. He has had a varied career in Industry and Academia. His experience ranges from a diving startup company and construction diving in the North Sea, to Project Management at INTECsea Engineering specializing in deepwater geohazards. He holds a PhD in Geology with emphasis on stable isotope geochemistry.
• Elizabeth Summer, PhD, Vice President, Research - She is a full time researcher at Ecolyse and TAMU in the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics in the Center for Phage Technology. She has a broad molecular biology background and over 8 years of experience with phage biology and therapeutic applications. Prior experience with virology, membrane protein biochemistry and algal physiology and molecular biology. She holds a PhD in Molecular Virology from the University of South Carolina.
• Doug Baldwin, General Counsel - Most recently in private practice, he previously served as Chief Intellectual Property Law Counsel (Assistant General Counsel for Intellectual Property) with Shell Oil Company in Houston. At Shell he was responsible for all aspects of intellectual property law including significant involvement in the polymer chemistry, and alternative energy technologies. He holds a BChE (Chemical Engineering) from the University of Florida and a J.D. from the University of Houston.
• Mei Liu, PhD, Microbiology Manager - Our Research Lab Manager, Mei brings experience in multiple fields in microbiology including general bacteriology, anaerobic microbiology, molecular biology and industrial fermentation control. She has previously conducted research on bacterial cell-cell signaling and the ecological interactions of bacteria, and the application of bacteriophages for the control of environmental bacteria. She holds a PhD in Food Microbiology from the University of Guelph, Canada.
• Iris Porat, PhD, Microbiology Manager - Iris has ten years experience in the physiology and ecology of anaerobic bacteria; including sulfate-reducing bacteria, acetogens, and methanogens. Iris joined Ecolyse with a diverse background working in industry and academia, as well as at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. She holds a PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology as well as a MBA from Ben-Gurion University, Israel.
• Sarah "Sassie" Duggleby, Product Manager, Phage Products - Sassie has a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Texas A&M and a MBA from Virginia Tech. For the past few years, she has been in charge of all marketing, customer support, and sales support for a small, high-growth technology start-up based in Blacksburg, VA. Her previous experience also includes web marketing, applications engineering, and consulting.

Ecolyse, Inc. is graduate of the Research Valley Innovation Center in College Station, TX.