Cannabis Science & Technology Editors’ Series: Cannabis Analytical Science Program Live Webcast

Scott Coates is the Program Lead for the Cannabis Analytical Science Program (CASP) and as such leads the CASP team at AOAC to implement the standards and methods priorities determined by the CASP Advisory Panel. Scott facilitates the work of CASP working groups who produce the actual standards known as Standard Method Performance Requirements (SMPRs).

Scott was appointed as the Senior Director of the AOAC Research Institute on July 1, 2018. As the Senior Director of the AOAC Research Institute, Scott is responsible for daily management of and business development for the Performance Tested Methods program that evaluates and certifies proprietary test kits. Scott served as the AOAC Chief Science Office from 2009 until June 2018. In this capacity, he served as the technical lead for many AOAC projects. Scott led the writing and development of Appendix F in theOfficial Methods of Analysis of AOAC INTERNATIONALthat describes validation requirements and the development ofStandard Method Performance Requirements. Before joining AOAC, he worked for 10 years as the Operations Manager for an in-vitro diagnostic manufacturer making medical test kits such as Strep tests and specialized bacterial culture media. Scott holds a B.S. in Microbiology (1978) and a M.S. in Biotechnology Management (1994) from the University of Maryland.

Contact Scott at: [email protected], (301) 924-7077 x137

Julia began her career in the cannabis industry in 2014 at Gobi Labs, one of the first cannabis testing facilities to open in Colorado. She then transitioned to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s Marijuana Reference Laboratory where she currently serves as Lead Scientist. Julia is also the Chair of the Cannabis Chemistry Subdivision of the American Chemical Society and the Co-Chair of the AOAC CASP Microbial Contaminants Working Group.

Holly E. Johnson Ph.D., is the Chief Science Officer for the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA). She previously served for three years as Laboratory Director for Alkemist Labs, an ISO 17025 accredited natural products testing lab specializing in botanical dietary supplements. Dr. Johnson took her Ph.D. in Pharmacognosy at the College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois – Chicago (UIC), under renowned Pharmacognosist and researcher Dr. Norman Farnsworth. Holly was awarded a National Institutes for Health (NIH) Fellowship and trained at the UIC/NIH Center for Botanical Dietary Supplements. She was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Institute for EthnoMedicine studying the etiology of neurodegenerative disease, and also worked for Waters Corporation conducting technical training and regulatory consulting for pharmaceutical and supplements companies. She is currently a Research Associate with the National Tropical Botanical Garden and serves on AOAC working groups, stakeholders’ panels, and expert review panels for Foods and Dietary Supplements. She is a member of the United States Pharmacopeia’s (USP) Medical Cannabis Expert Panel, the Editorial Board of the Journal of AOAC International, and she serves on the Advisory Boards of the American Botanical Council and the American Herbal Pharmacopeia. Holly has over 20 years’ experience working with natural products & botanicals and spent many happy years conducting research on medicinal plants and giving courses at the University of Hawaii.

Dr. Susan Audino is a chemist/chemometrician and independent consultant to chemical and biological laboratories. On behalf of Accreditation Bodies, she assesses laboratories to and is an instructor for multiple ISO/IEC standards including ISO 17025. She is highly visible in the cannabis industry as a leader for the development of official/consensus test methods and quality in science, and is a member of expert review panels. She also serves as scientific advisor to multiple cannabis testing laboratories, private and non-profit cannabis organizations including Emerald Scientific and The Cannabis Science and Technology journal, and state regulatory bodies. Dr. Audino has chaired the AOAC cannabis advisory panel and analytical cannabis working groups, was a member of the NCIA Guide for Laboratory Testing, is a faculty member of Teachable Medicine, Board Member of Hood College, Board Member of The Center for Research on Environmental Medicine, and has been an invited speaker at many domestic and international scientific conferences. Dr. Audino is principal at S.A. Audino & Associates, LLC, principal at RWD, LLC, principal at Executive Quality Management, LLC, and Vice President & Sr. Science Officer at RCU Laboratories.