Carsten Wolff

Background

About Carsten Wolff

Interdisciplinary scientist, technologist and commercialization lead with three decades of research and development expertise. Conducting next-gen biotechnology research in-house and in partnership, with leading global talent, for commercially viable, sustainable outcomes, based in Abu Dhabi. Expertise in: Innovative bioactive compound libraries through biobanking and biodiversity taxonomy, best-practice collection & curation, drug discovery from natural sources, biochemistry, cell-culture, bioassays, sequencing, cloning, microbiology, cGMP, biomaterials, invertebrate and algal aquaculture; indigenous collaborations; legal frameworks, compliance, media, product and business development. Recent also: Long term real-time offshore water quality data monitoring network design and maintenance (e.g. NZ largest ever dredge impact real-time monitoring network). Adaptive monitoring R&D, optics and acoustics, sensor integration; biodiversity-surveys & EIAs, ecology, oceanography, offshore, dredging impacts, bioremediation. Scientific diver to AS2815.1; data management; business development. During 14 years as biologist & collection manager in the Australian Institute of Marine Science's natural products drug discovery program, I took lead of their marine biodiversity collection, pioneered successful aquaculture methods and helped optimize hit-to-lead yield from macro- & microorganisms. Clients & collaborators ranged from pharmaceutical, offshore & aquaculture industries to government, indigenous groups, media & academia. As a Beaufort Marine Biodiscovery Scholar in Ireland for molecular systematics & biodiscovery, I researched chemical, genetic and ecological relationships of marine taxa and their potential as anti-cancer drug compound candidates. I sequenced multiple gene-regions for phylogeny, adapted cloning and deep sequencing-protocols to understand genomic relationships and identified promising, i.e. selective and specific, putatively apoptosis-inducing drug compound lead-candidates from marine organisms in controlled human prostate-cancer cell-line assays. Having worked on five continents from the tropics to Antarctica, I provide extensive scientific, management, design and technical know-how to innovative multidisciplinary field, or laboratory- based research. As an Australian versed in access & benefit-sharing, IP, indigenous/stakeholder relations, environmental legislative frameworks and permits, I maintain an active interest in international environmental and biotechnology frontiers.