K-State Olathe

Robert Casillas

Director of Nonclinical Consulting
Latham Biopharm Group

 

Robert CasillasRobert Casillas, Ph.D., joined Latham Biopharm Group in 2019 and serves as director of nonclinical consulting.

Two years ago, Casillas started the company's business area, with himself as the only employee. By February 2021, he now oversees an expanding business line that reaches into discovery, nonclinical and animal health consulting that is operated by a team of six — two of whom are K-State doctoral alumni.

Casillas was Latham Biopharm Group's 17th hire. The company ow has 35 employees and is projected to be at 45 employees by the end of 2021.

Previously, Casillas served at MRIGlobal as vice president for Strategic Global Health Security, where he was responsible for growing programs for chemical and biological medical countermeasures and animal health in support of government, industry and academia.

He also held several positions of progressive responsibility at Battelle, including vice president for CBRN Business Integration; vice president of biomedical science and technology; and associate director of the Biomedical Research Center. Prior to Battelle, he served as an active duty Army biochemist and assigned in various positions to research chemical and biological medical countermeasures and non-medical defense technologies. Casillas continues to serve in the U.S. Army Reserve as a Col., and provides subject matter expertise on CBRN medical defense to senior leaders.

Casillas has 26 years of professional biochemical toxicology research experience, with 20 of those years managing laboratories and staff to conduct hundreds of medical defense projects aimed at combatting the harmful or deadly effects of chemical and biological agents.

Casillas serves on the Board of Directors for the Missouri Biotechnology Association, the Kansas City Animal Health Corridor, the KU-Edwards Workforce Development Advisory Board and the Society of Toxicology Hispanic Organization of Toxicologists. He also is an adjunct professor in the department of pharmacology and toxicology at Rutgers University, and a Fellow of the Academy of Toxicological Sciences.

Casillas has a Ph.D. in microbial biochemistry from Georgia State University, and completed a post-doc at Vanderbilt University, in the department of biochemistry, Center in Molecular Toxicology.