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Chief Executive Officer of KIYATEC to Speak at GSSM SmartChat Speakers Series

Submitted by: Leigh Hewlett on Nov 02, 2011 at 1:36 pm Tagged with: Biology, Entrepreneurship, High School, math, SC GSSM, Science, South Carolina, south carolina governor's school for science and mathematics, Technology Source: South Carolina Governor's School for Science and Mathematics Foundation

The South Carolina Governor’s School for Science and Mathematics (GSSM) is pleased to announce that Dr. Matthew Gevaert, chief executive officer of KIYATEC Inc., will present to students as part of the School’s SmartChat Speakers Series. His presentation will take place Wednesday, November 2, 1 p.m., on the GSSM campus in Hartsville.

In 2005 Gevaert co-founded KIYATECH, a life sciences company leveraging its novel three-dimensional (3D) cell culture platform to create high value, high fidelity in vitro models for life science research, drug discovery and personalized medicine. By creating cell-based laboratory models that more accurately represent complex human biology, KIYATEC assists researchers in identifying safe and effective drugs more quickly and cost effectively and helps clinicians choose the best therapy on a patient-specific basis.

Originally from Ontario, Canada, Gevaert received his bachelor’s degree in applied chemistry from the University of Waterloo and his master’s and doctorate degrees in bioengineering from Clemson University. With a background in both business and technology, he led the commercialization of Clemson’s biomedical and biotechnology intellectual property portfolio for nearly five years. He maintains current appointments at Clemson as a professor in the Department of Bioengineering and as a visiting professor in the Spiro Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership.

During his SmartChat presentation, "Your Petri dish is so 1887 - An Introduction to 3D Cell Culture," Gevaert will talk to students about KIYATEC’s unique 3D platform.

"It is important to understand our own complex human biology,” says Gevaert. “From this knowledge comes health by prevention and healing by treatment, but the tools we've used for many years to model ourselves and our own biology are limiting. On November 2, we will discuss the whole new world that emerges when we move cultured cells out of the Petri dish - a 2D environment - and into three dimensions."

GSSM strives for the SmartChat presentations to enhance the education of students while also inspiring them through the stories and experiences of some of the Palmetto States’ most promising leaders in technology, engineering, entrepreneurship, research and medicine.