Lygos Appoints Photon Rao as Chief Patent Counsel

BERKELEY, UNITED STATES - May 7, 2019 - Lygos, Inc., a full-stack producer of specialty chemicals that deliver high-value performance without the environmental toxicity, today announced that experienced IP attorney Photon Rao, JD, PhD, has been named Chief Patent Counsel. He will be responsible for procuring and protecting the company’s growing intellectual property (IP) portfolio and related licenses. 

“Photon is an exceptional patent attorney with extensive experience in establishing and enforcing high-value IP in the biotechnology, chemical, and polymer product and process spaces,” said Eric Steen, PhD, CEO of Lygos. “Our proprietary technology platform is built upon a strong foundation of IP and Photon’s strategic advice will be instrumental as we continue to grow our business and enable more customers to replace toxic legacy petrochemicals, reclaim local manufacturing and revive industrial innovation.”

Dr. Rao brings 15 years of business-focused IP strategy, procurement and protection experience. He has a proven track record in establishing strong IP platforms for emerging companies and has participated in IP-related deals totaling more than $2 billion. Prior to joining Lygos, he worked at an American Lawyer  100 firm and as the Director of IP at Threshold Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Rao received his PhD from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and pursued post-doctoral research at Louis Pasteur University (Strasbourg I) and University of Florida, Gainesville. He has co-authored several important papers in peer-reviewed journals, including Angewandte Chemie, and is a named inventor in a number of patents and patent applications.

“Lygos is uniquely positioned to transform industrial chemical production processes for many large-scale industries in the near future,” said Dr. Rao. “The company already features a comprehensive IP portfolio, which extends across biotechnology, chemistry, and high-performance polymer products and processes. I’m looking forward to joining this accomplished team and helping them realize the full potential of these high-value assets.”

Lygos’ proprietary technology platform is based on a high-throughput combination of computational modeling, unique microbe engineering and screening, and machine learning. It is used to identify and develop new bio-routes to chemical functionalities that can expand the performance window in diverse materials systems. The company applies modern biotechnology to deliver the benefits of petroleum-based and other industrial chemical technologies without environmental toxicity at competitive prices. Lygos’ customers seek sustainable cost-efficient solutions for applications where industrial chemistry uses expensive, environmentally degrading options or has none to offer.

About Lygos

Lygos has created a full-stack biological engineering platform focused on organic acid specialty chemicals and bio-monomers. Lygos’ sustainable, bio-based chemicals replace expensive, environmentally degrading alternatives from traditional industrial suppliers, enabling customers to create better, safer products with value-added performance. For more information, visit www.lygos.com and follow us @LygosBiotech.