Dr. Neal Connors is an industrial microbiologist with three decades of experience and currently leads the Industrial Microbiology Program at ATCC-CTM. His expertise in bioprocess development reflects involvement with a diverse portfolio of projects including: bioactive natural products, renewable fuels and chemicals, therapeutic proteins, whole cell biocatalysis, and vaccines. This broad background allows Neal to serve companies of all sizes that are developing and producing bioprocess-derived products. Additionally, he is a Fellow in the Research Institute for Scientists Emeriti (RISE) at Drew University (Madison, NJ)

Previously, Dr. Connors was a Founder and CTO of Kalion, Inc., an industrial biotech start-up, and rose to the level of Senior Investigator at Merck & Co. where he was involved in the bioprocess development and commercialization of CANCIDAS®, a first-in-class natural product antifungal antibiotic. Neal is a contributing author on numerous peer-reviewed papers, book chapters, patents, and conference abstracts. He has been an active member of the Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology for several years serving as President, Director, and program chair for the Society’s Annual Meeting and Fermentation Technology Meeting. He also serves on the editorial boards for the Journal of Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology and Enzyme and Microbial Technology and is a regular reviewer for Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology. Neal received his BS in Biology from Norwich University and his PhD in Microbiology from The Ohio State University.