Thomas R. Cech, Ph.D.

Special Advisor

In early January 2010, Thomas R. Cech, Ph.D., agreed to join Morgenthaler as a Special Advisor to the Life Sciences Team. Dr. Cech was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1989 for discovering that Ribonucleic Acid (RNA) molecules are not just passive information carriers, but can act as catalysts. In 2000, after many years as a University of Colorado Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Professor, Dr. Cech was named President of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. In April 2009, Dr. Cech stepped down as President and returned to Boulder to direct the University of Colorado’s Biofrontiers Institute. In addition to his role at the University of Colorado, Dr. Cech has agreed to assist Morgenthaler Life Sciences partners in the identification and review of new investment opportunities.