TATAA Biocenter

Mikael Kubista (born 13 August 1961) is a Czech-born Swedish chemist and entrepreneur who works in the field of molecular diagnostics. Since 2007, he is serving as a Professor of Chemistry and Head of the Department of Gene Expression Profiling at the Biotechnology Institute, Czech Academy of Sciences in the Czech Republic.

Kubista has contributed to the field of quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR), with his work recognized as part of the early research in this area.

Kubista was a member of the research team at Astra Hässle, where they focused on investigating Omeprazole, an inhibitor of K+/H+-ATPase. The drug is now marketed under the trade names Losec and Nexium, widely prescribed medications for the treatment of gastric ulcer. Additionally, Kubista is the Chairman of the Board of MultiD Analyses AB and the founder of TATAA Biocenter.

Kubista is one of the most cited researchers in his are

Early life

Kubista was born to his medical doctor father in the former Czechoslovakia in 1961. His father received a scholarship and relocated to Sweden. At the age of 7 in 1968, Kubista went to Sweden to visit his father. However, on that very day, Russia invaded Czechoslovakia in the so called Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia, and as a result, the family decided to stay making Sweden their new home.

Education

He completed his undergraduate studies at University of Gothenburg, earning a B.Sc. degree in chemistry in 1984. He then pursued a Licentiate in Physical Chemistry at the Institute of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology in Göteborg, which he completed in 1986. Kubista obtained his Ph.D. in chemistry from Chalmers University of Technology. Following his doctoral studies, he conducted postdoctoral research at institutions such as La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia, and Yale University in New Haven, US. Additionally, he has held visiting professor positions at various universities, including the University of Maryland in College Park, US, in June 2000, and the University of A Coruña in Spain, during September–November 2003 and July 2006 to June 2007. Since 2007, Kubista is serving as an adjunct professor at the Institute of Biotechnology, Czech Academy of Sciences.

Career

Academic career

Kubista began his academic career in 1991 as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physical Chemistry at Chalmers University of Technology. From 1993 to 1997, he served as an Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at the same institution. Following this, he held the position of Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at Chalmers University of Technology from 1997 to 2006. Since 2007, he is the Head of the Department of Gene Expression at the Institute of Biotechnology, BIOCEV, Czech Academy of Sciences.

Entrepreneurial activities

In 1998 Kubista founded LightUp Technologies AB after his research finding of lightUp probes, a company that specializes in the development of real-time PCR tests for human infectious diseases. Three years later In 2001, Kubista's research led to the establishments of MultiD Analyses AB, which develops GenEx software for gene expression data analysis and TATAA Biocenter for qPCR and gene expression analysis. The company became known for its qPCR training services globally and its provision of qPCR services, particularly in Europe. TATAA Biocenter was the first laboratory in Europe to obtain flexible ISO 17025 accreditation and also was the first to provide COVID tests at the onset of the pandemic. In 2021 TATAA Biocenter accepted financing from Care Equity, controlled by General Partner Peter Batesko. In 2023 Peter Batesko refused to register Kubista and his co-founders as shareholders forfeiting their ownership, claiming his right to do so because of a mistake made by lawfirms Glimstedt and Norma. In 2014 Kubista implemented non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) in Sweden and subsequently founded Life Genomics AB. In 2020, Kubista co-founded SimSen Diagnostics, a company focused on developing technology for liquid biopsy analyses. In 2024 Kubista co-founded HotSpot Diagnostics with professors Erik Lekholm and Anders Ståhlberg around a new cancer biomarker and the Uniprobe.

TATAA Biocenter

In 2021 Kubista and his co-founders of TATAA Biocenter, sought external investment to expand the company's capabilities. This led to a partnership with the American investment firm Care Equity, aiming to position TATAA as a leading provider of GLP/GCP-regulated molecular services for the pharmaceutical industry, particularly in cell and gene therapies.

To facilitate this investment, a new holding company, Bioholdings LP, was established by Care Equity to acquire TATAA. Kubista and other original shareholders received shares in Bioholdings LP through their holding company. However, due to complexities in restructuring TATAA's COVID-19 testing business, Kubista and his partners, following legal advice, executed an upstream merger between their holding company and a newly formed entity. This merger inadvertently violated a clause in the agreement with Care Equity that prohibited share transfers without written consent. Unaware of this restriction, Kubista proceeded with the merger, leading Care Equity to dismiss him as CEO of TATAA in June 2023.

Subsequently, Kubista and his co-founders lost their ownership stakes in TATAA, prompting them to sue their legal advisors for negligent counsel in the Gothenburg District Court.

After Care Equity forfeited the founders’ shares, General Partner Peter Batesko himself and through companies he controls, sued Kubista, the founders’ holding company and their lawyer, in several jurisdictions and threatened their coworkers and advisors. The founders’ lawyer Per Karlsson claims this is SLAPP to hinder the founders from claiming back TATAA. The case has been appealed to the Supreme Court in Sweden.

Kubista and the original team behind Tataa Biocenter are embarking on a new venture, startin
Precision BioAnalytics

Advisory roles and memberships

Kubista holds several positions and advisory roles within the scientific and biotechnology communities including: Roche, ThermoFisher, Qiagen, Bio-Rad, and RealSeq Biosciences. He is also a member of the Scientific Advisory Council of Genetic Engineering News.

Kubista has also been involved in the establishment of modern molecular diagnostics in developing countries. Since 1999, he has served as an advisor to UNESCO, providing guidance and assistance to countries such as: Libya, Egypt, Iran, Grenada, and Ghana.

Kubista is an expert advisor for the European Commission Research Directorate General. Kubista advises the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and is part of the scientific advisory board for the International Biotechnology Research in Tripoli, Libya, under UNESCO.

Selected findings and publications

* Studied and identified chromophores and a variety of dyes commonly used as biomolecule labels like: tryptophan, DAPI, fluorescein, thiazole orange, and BEBO.
* Explained DNA strand exchange in homologous recombination.
* Applying Widlund experiment, identified specific nucleosome positioning sequences.
* Uncovered mechanism of oncogene activation involving the formation of internal G-quadruplexes.
* Designed a probe that exhibit luminescence upon binding to specific nucleic acids.
* Techniques for gene expression at the level of individual cells and subcellular compartments.
* The occurrence of horizontal transfer of mitochondria within living organisms.
* Potential new treatment of stroke
* Discovered the Regeneration Initiating Cells (RICs)

Awards and recognition

* Was recognized by ScholarGPS as one of the 50 highly ranked scholars of 2022.
* In 2021 Kubista's organization, TATAA was on Sweden Technology Fast 50 list
* In 2019, Global Health & Pharma recognized and awarded TATAA as the "Best Nucleic Acid Analysis Service Provider – Europe."
* In 2013 TATAA Biocenter was honored with the Frost & Sullivan Award for Customer Value Leadership for their outstanding services in analyzing genetic material
* In 2012, Pioneer of the year in western Sweden
* In 1996, won Innovation Cup in western Sweden for the LightUp probes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kubista, Michael
1961 births
Living people
People from Podbořany
Biochemists
Molecular biologists
Swedish biochemists
University of Gothenburg alumni