Faculty/Staff

Sheldon Broedel, a member of the UMBC faculty since 2008, has a combined 33 years of industry and academic experience. He is a founder/CEO/CSO of Athena Environmental Sciences, Inc., a diversified biotechnology company that specializes in designing, developing and manufacturing bio-based products. Under the Athena Enzyme Systems™ brand, the company makes and sells a line of biotools designed to improve the expression and recovery of recombinant proteins. Additionally, Dr. Broedel has held research and management positions with Martin Marietta Laboratories (now Lockheed-Martin), Dorlin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (formerly ChekTec Corporation). In 2005, Dr. Broedel received UMBC’s Outstanding Alumni of the Year Award. He has a diverse range of scientific publications, holds five issued patents, and has designed, reduced to practice and launched more than 160 products. Dr. Broedel and his development teams have received ten SBIR grant awards for their work with infectious diseases, environmental products and diagnostic tests. Athena currently has a portfolio of over 500 products serving world-wide biotechnology and consumer markets.

Dr. Broedel completed his B.S. in Biology at the State University of New York at Geneseo and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Microbial Genetics at UMBC. He also holds positions as the Associate Graduate Program Director and Instructor for the MPS: Biotechnology at UMBC and as an Adjunct Professor with the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Georgetown University School of Medicine.

Joan Ellis, a specialist in legal and bioethical issues, conducts patent portfolio management and client counseling in her current position as a member of Dickinson Wright, PLLC. in Washington, D.C. Previously, she was a counsel at Perkins Coie LLP, Proskauer Rose LLP, and a Partner at Venable LLP. Additionally, Dr. Ellis was an Administrative Patent Judge and Patent Examiner at the United States Patent and Trademark Office. She holds one patent herself.

Dr. Ellis completed her B.A. in Microbiology at Southern Illinois University, a Ph.D. in Molecular Parasitology and Biochemistry from New York University Medical Center, and a J.D. from The George Washington University. She is a member of the D.C. Bar, Court of Appeals and Maryland, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Furthermore, she has scientifically published on a variety of topics.

Marcia Federici, Ph.D.

Dr. Federici has over 25 years of experience in biotechnology. She has held various positions of increasing managerial responsibilities. She is an expert in protein structural analysis, bio analytical method development and bio pharmaceutical product formulation development and manufacturing. She is an expert in regulator affairs for bio pharmaceutical products.

Elizabeth Feeser, Ph.D.

Elizabeth Feeser has over a decade of experience as a biochemist and molecular biologist. Her research specialties include chromatin regulation and molecular motors using a wide variety of techniques, including x-ray crystallography, yeast genetics, and fluorescence microscopy. Most recently, Dr. Feeser received a National Research Service Awards (NRSA) Postdoctoral Fellowship from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) to fund her studies on the interactions between the motor protein, myosin-1e, and lipid membranes. Prior to that fellowship, she was a research assistant at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine working on the molecular structure of Rap1. Dr. Feeser has many years of teaching experience as well through her time at Georgetown, Johns Hopkins, and Delaware County Community College.

Dr. Feeser received her B.S. in Biochemistry from Georgetown University and her Ph.D. in Biochemistry, Cellular, and Molecular Biology from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She completed her postdoctoral studies in the Pennsylvania Muscle Institute at the University of Pennsylvania.

Dr. Olivera Markovic is the Director of BioSciCon, Inc, a medical device biotechnology company developing cancer diagnostic tests, specialized in developing novel worldwide cervical cancer screening concepts based on biomarkers and telemedicine, including a proprietary MarkPap® platform technology. She currently also serves as the President of the Global Academy for Women’s Health, a non-profit organization with a mission to globally advance science and education in women’s health.

As a cancer research scientist, Dr. Markovic has 200 scientific publications including books, chapters in books, invited review articles, scientific papers and patents. Author of the book “What every woman should know about cervical cancer”, Springer 2008, 2010. The 2015 edition is in preparation.

In addition to a cancer research scientist and author, she is an experienced academic with more than 30 years of experience teaching undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral students as well as elected professor, visiting, adjunct professor at five universities and medical schools.

Antonio Moreira, Ph.D.

Antonio Moreira is the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs and a professor of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering at University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Dr. Moreira has both previous (Schering-Plough Corporation) and ongoing biotechnology industry contacts and experience. He draws from first-hand work in research and development, scale-up and introduction to commercialization of biotechnology products, such alpha interferon. Dr. Moreira has an active research program in bioprocess engineering and is a consultant to various biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies.

He has received various awards including a NATO Senior Fellowship and the James Aggalloco Award from the Parenteral Drug Association. He served as the President for the Chesapeake Bay Area Chapter of the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering; he is immediate past-chair of the Council for Biotechnology Centers for the BIO Industry Organization, and serves on scientific advisory boards for various organizations. Dr. Moreira is Chairman of Peritus Consultants, Inc. an international consulting corporation. He is also a graduate of Leadership Maryland, class of 1998.

He received his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Porto in Portugal and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Moreira is the Graduate Program Director for the Graduate Certificate in Biochemical Regulatory Engineering.

Carol A. Spiegel, currently an IP Consultant for patent issues, is a former Administrative Patent Judge who served on the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (now the Patent Trial and Appeals Board) from 1999 through 2010 before retiring from government service. Judge Spiegel adjudicated cases primarily in the areas of biotechnology, pharmacology, medical devices, and chemistry. Prior to her appointment to the Board, Judge Spiegel was a primary examiner in the Biotechnology group at the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Judge Spiegel received her B.S. in Chemistry from Mundelein College of Loyola University, a M.S. in Biotechnology from Johns Hopkins University, and a J.D. from the George Washington University Law School. She is certified as Chemist and as a Specialist in Clinical Chemistry by the American Association for Clinical Pathology. She is a member of the Maryland State Bar and is admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Judge Spiegel is a Master in the Giles S. Rich American Inn of Court and is a member of the American Bar Association, the American Intellectual Property Law Association, and the American Society for Clinical Pathology.

Timothy Wood, Ph.D.

Timothy Wood is currently employed at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center as supervisor of the Department of Clinical Investigation, Research Operations Service Chemistry Section. His work is diverse and includes a variety of interests involving basic, translational, and applied chemistry research. His principal strengths include conducting collaborative and independent research using microbiological, molecular biology, structural biology and biochemistry techniques with significant experience in gene cloning, transcription regulation, recombinant protein expression, purification, and characterization through mutational analysis, functional assays and troubleshooting.

Dr. Wood’s previous research experience includes training and post-doctoral work in macromolecular crystallography at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) and The Skaggs Institute of Chemical Biology located in La Jolla, California. While at TSRI, Wood’s primary focus was on understanding the chemical mechanism of chromophore synthesis of Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP). He also worked on bacterial proteins involved in bacterial stress responses and pathogenesis. Wood’s interest in bacterial pathogenesis began in graduate school at UMBC where he studied gene regulation under Dr. Richard E. Wolf, Jr.

Dr. Wood completed his B.S. in Biochemistry at Grove City College and his Ph.D. in Molecular and Cellular Biology at UMBC.