Revealing Molecular Structure,
Enabling Innovation
Mapping the Molecular Atlas of Food and Health
Decoding the molecular makeup of food and health under various conditions offers powerful insights that can inform decisions throughout the food ecosystem. By revealing the links between diet, health, and sustainability, this understanding helps align ancestral knowledge with modern scientific progress.
Multi-Omics & Informatics Expertise
Pharm to Food decodes the molecular composition of products—from pharmaceuticals and biologics to food, dietary supplements, and personal care materials—using cutting-edge analytics and informatics to decode the molecular connections between food and health, equipping our partners with actionable insights to advance both human and planetary well-being.
Our Team
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Carlito B. Lebrilla, PhD
Analytical Chemist
Distinguished Professor
UC Davis Chemistry and Chemical Biology -
Harold Schmitz, PhD
Founding Partner, The March Group
Senior Scholar, GSM, UC Davis
Former CSO, Mars -
Michael Russelle Alvarez, PhD
PhD Chemistry and Chemical Biology Innovator Fellow, IIFH; The March Group
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David Feitel, JD
Legal Advisor
Carlito B. Lebrilla, PhD
Dr. Lebrilla is a Distinguished Professor at the University of California, Davis in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and in Molecular Medicine at its School of Medicine. He received his PhD from the University of California, Berkeley and was the Alexander von Humboldt Fellow and NSF/NATO Fellow at the Technical University in Berlin.
His research focuses on developing bioanalytical methods based on mass spectrometry with the goals of structurally characterizing bioactives in food and determining its relationships to health and diseases. He has created techniques for the characterization of milk bio actives, specifically mammalian milk oligosaccharides.
Harold Schmitz, PhD
Dr. Harold Schmitz is a seasoned venture builder with unique global experience at the interface between research universities and the food, health, and climate technology sectors.
Dr. Schmitz holds a Ph.D. in Food Science from North Carolina State University, MS in Food Science from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and a BS in Food Science from the University of Arkansas. He is a founding partner of The March Group, Senior Scholar at UC Davis, and former CSO of Mars.
Michael Russelle Alvarez, PhD
Russelle is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Davis. He earned his Ph.D. in Chemistry and Chemical Biology at UC Davis under the mentorship of Prof. Carlito B. Lebrilla, where he developed bioanalytical methods to characterize protein glycosylation pathways and investigate their implications in diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer’s. He was also an Innovator Fellow at The March Group and the UC Davis Institute for Food and Health.
Leveraging his cross-disciplinary training in science and entrepreneurship, Russelle co-founded Pharm to Food, a bioanalytical research company providing analytical chemistry expertise and advanced measurement capabilities to startups and companies in the biotech, foodtech, and agtech sectorsDavid Feitel, JD
Dave received both his undergraduate and law degrees from Duke University. In addition to a diverse set of private clients, David currently serves as a Network Advisor to Maryland’s Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO) and as an advisor to Johns Hopkins Technology Ventures.
Through a combination of experiences as a litigator, General Counsel and EVP of Martek, and General Counsel of three business segments of Mars, Incorporated, Dave has gained a unique perspective on life sciences and food and nutrition, which has proven invaluable to clients seeking to accelerate their development and commercialization efforts.
Our Technology
Explore our range of services designed to help you move forward with confidence, wherever you're headed next.
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Comprehensive database detailing the fiber composition of over 2,500 foods, offering an in-depth resource for exploring dietary glycans and their roles in nutrition and health.
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AI-driven search engine designed to predict the biological activities of carbohydrates by integrating machine learning with glycoinformatics, facilitating the discovery of glycan functions in health, nutrition, and disease contexts.
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Complete identification and quantification of protein, peptide, and amino acid signatures in food matrices.
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Quantification of milk oligosaccharides in human (HMO), bovine (BMO), and other milk matrices to uncover their health benefits, including roles in gut health, immunity, and microbial modulation
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Complete quantification of long-chain and short-chain fatty acids in food and biological sample matrices.
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Quantification of glycomic and metabolic biomarker signatures for clinical studies.
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Complete glycomic and proteomic characterization of bioactive fibers and unique protein products in biological samples.
Contact Us
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