Team Bio

Our group is a leader in developing protein design and protein assay data modeling methods and our lab bench expertise enables maximal leveraging of these in silico avenues for rapid protein property optimization. This project’s 'team within a team', i.e., Dr. Heinzelman and I, has a track record spanning time here at UW and the lab of Nobel Laureate Frances Arnold at Caltech: five publications with two more in preparation, a US patent filing, and several awarded grant submissions.

Philip Romero

I'm an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Biochemistry and Chemical & Biological Engineering at UW-Madison. My graduate studies were conducted in Nobel Laureate Frances Arnold’s lab at Caltech with subsequent postdoctoral research in the lab of microfluidics-based protein engineering expert Adam Abate at UCSF. The Damon Runyon-Rachleff Innovation Award, Greater Milwaukee Foundation Shaw Scientist Award, and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) Innovation Award have been granted in recognition of my prior research efforts.

Our lab focuses on machine learning-driven enzyme engineering and has numerous publications and ongoing projects in the arena of bioenergy and environmental sustainability. This Homeworld Collective silicase development project fits well with the sustainability theme and I'm enthusiastic about potentially being privileged with the resources that will allow us to pursue and achieve the project goals.

Pete Heinzelman

Two formative elements of my grade school years were viewing the dystopian film Soylent Green and seeing a family friend’s life slowly taken away by Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). Pursuing a Chemical Engineering degree here at UW-Madison opened doors for me to go hard after what I chose as my top priority as a professional and person; developing biotechnological solutions to challenges in planetary well-being and aging medicine. This opportunity was furthered by protein engineering PhD studies at MIT and postdoctoral scholarship in the birthplace of protein directed evolution, the lab of Nobel Laureate Frances Arnold at Caltech.

These and subsequent experiences as a University professor, industrial biopharma scientist, and senior academic researcher have and continue to provide opportunities to pursue avenues for solving problems in climate welfare and AD while looking back at the associated outputs, i.e., six US patents and fifteen first author publications, provides perpetual motivation. Reflecting upon the postdoctoral experience that led to four cellulase enzyme-related papers, four US patents, and commercial licensing of cellulases that I’d developed is particularly inspiring. Although cellulosic biomass-to-fuel conversion did not ultimately realize its great potential, seeing proteins I’d created advance to industry energizes me by showing that well-framed big picture thinking and persistence in the lab can put a researcher on the cusp of having an impact in the real world. This silicase project similarly motivates by presenting another opportunity to hit a technology home run for our planet’s welfare.

Every night I ask what are the biggest things I can do to keep projects with which I’m involved moving forward tomorrow. Then the alarm goes off and I do them. I'll put this fire to work to provide Homeworld Collective with fulfilling returns on their support of our silicase engineering effort and appreciate your consideration of our funding request.