BOULDER, Colo.– Inscripta, Inc., The Digital Genome Engineering Company, today announced that it has appointed Kristala Prather, PhD, to serve on its Board of Directors. Dr. Prather is currently the Arthur D. Little Professor and Executive Officer of the Department of Chemical Engineering at MIT.
“We are very excited to have Kris join our board. She brings a distinguished scientific background and a thoughtful perspective on the field of synthetic biology that will be invaluable to Inscripta and our customers,” said Sri Kosaraju, President and CEO of Inscripta. “We look forward to her voice and guidance as we pursue our mission of enabling scientists to realize the full potential of the bioeconomy, which has recently begun with the introduction of the Onyx® platform for digital genome engineering.”
Dr. Prather’s research interests are centered on the design and assembly of recombinant microorganisms for the production of small molecules, with additional focus in novel bioprocess design approaches. Her research lab specializes in harnessing the power of synthetic biology to build microbial chemical factories with engineered control of metabolic flux. Prior to joining the faculty of MIT, she spent four years in bioprocess research and development at Merck Research Labs (Rahway, NJ).
“We are at an exciting time of discovery and progress in synthetic biology. I have been impressed with the Inscripta team and technology. I am looking forward to working with the company to empower researchers around the world to fully understand the potential of biology to solve many big problems in healthcare, manufacturing, climate science and beyond,” said Dr. Prather.
Prather has been the recipient of 20 prestigious awards, including the Charles Thom Award of the Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology in 2017 and the Andreas Acrivos Award for Professional Progress in Chemical Engineering in 2021. Prather has also been recognized for her excellence in teaching. In 2014 she received a MacVicar Faculty Fellow appointment, the highest honor given for undergraduate teaching at MIT. She holds a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, and a S.B. in chemical engineering from MIT.
