Shiru is pleased to announce that Brandon Simmons-Rawls has joined the team as a Senior Research Associate.
Shiru’s mission is to feed people sustainably by leveraging machine learning and precision biology to identify and create ideal food proteins. Brandon’s expertise in synthetic biology will be hugely important in scaling up our strain engineering platform.
Brandon received his BS in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from Cornell University in 2013. He then worked with NAVAIR as part of the Department of the Navy for 18 months before transitioning to graduate school. Brandon received his MS in Chemical and Environmental Engineering. His research focused on metabolic engineering, yeast physiology, and molecular biology.
With these experiences in tow, Brandon worked for the synthetic biology company Zymergen and parlayed his knowledge to help with strain engineering, gene expression, and platform development in support of his teams. His portfolio of work has given him unique insights into novel synthetic pathways, overexpression of commercially relevant proteins, genetic circuitry, and molecular tool development.
“I am honored to join a team that takes progress towards sustainability to heart and that sees the level of impact food has on that journey. Affecting food in different realms – availability, taste, health, and sustainability – utilizing biology opens opportunities to reimagine how we use science to positively change our future, in food, and other realms I look forward to the innovation and teamwork that the people at Shiru have to offer and feel optimistic about the direction we are heading.”
Outside of the lab, you can find Brandon playing soccer and tennis, especially when the weather is warm. He is also a trivia host at a local Bay Area bar and a big karaoke fan.