Founder and CEO

 

Kevin D. Champaigne, Ph.D.

 

Dr. Champaigne founded Circa Bioscience, LLC to bring discoveries to market for the benefit of individuals and families dealing with neurodevelopment or metabolic conditions.  He has extensive background in the development of specialized cellular functional studies, electrophysiology, and bioinstrumentation, including live cell imaging, novel test chamber design, wearables development, and electronics design.

 

Dr. Champaigne has gained extensive business experience, particularly with the SBIR program, as a Program Director at Invocon, Inc., where he served as Principle Investigator for multiple SBIR Phase 1 and Phase 2 projects for NASA, the Department of Defense, the Department of Energy, and NIH.

 

As a Research Assistant Professor in the Clemson University Department of Bioengineering, Dr. Champaigne has investigated the mechanism behind the discovery by his Greenwood Genetic Center collaborators that lymphoblast cells from ASD patients produce significantly less NADH than cells from typically developing individuals when cultured under conditions where tryptophan is the only energy source.  Measurements of key cellular parameters that are known modulators of both the immune system and cells in the central nervous system have been acquired using live cell imaging, flow cytometry, and patch clamp electrophysiology techniques.

 

Dr. Champaigne earned a Ph.D. in Bioengineering in the laboratory of Dr. Jiro Nagatomi, where he investigated the mechanisms by which mechanical stimuli within the urinary bladder such as stretch or pressure are transduced into biological signals that lead to physiological responses and the sensation of bladder fullness.  His research specifically addressed the potential role of ion channels within the epithelial cells that line the bladder in mechanical signaling pathways, which have been implicated in various lower urinary tract disorders such as overactive bladder.