Neil Morrison, PhD, leads Oxitec’s malaria programs and collaboration with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Prior roles included leading the Bayer collaboration for fall armyworm and soybean looper and managing overseas agricultural product development collaborations.

Prior to joining Oxitec, Neil worked in medical communications, but was drawn to Oxitec’s founding mission to develop solutions for public health and agriculture at the forefront of insect biotechnology. During his PhD at the University of Oxford, Neil developed genetically engineered pink bollworm and – in collaboration with the US Department of Agriculture – conducted the world’s first field trials with a biotech insect, releasing millions of sterile Oxitec moths over commercial cotton in Arizona. Further product development followed, with self-limiting diamondback moths generated and tested under glass in the UK (Rothamsted) and in the US (Cornell University). The latter work with Professor Tony Shelton was continued, in the form of 2017 field trials with diamondback moth in upstate New York: the first field release of a self-limiting insect in the US, and the world’s first such trial with an agriculture pest. Alongside these significant milestones for Oxitec, Neil managed collaborations with the Western Australia’s Department of Agriculture, breaking new ground with importation and successful glasshouse testing with self-limiting medfly, and more recently, he led Oxitec’s most significant program in agriculture: the partnership with Bayer on development of a self-limiting fall armyworm to support biotech corn and chemistries in Brazilian corn, leading to deregulation of this product in Brazil. In addition to ongoing support of agriculture product development, Neil now heads Oxitec’s development of solutions for malaria vectors, currently approaching the product pilot phase.

In parallel with program leadership roles, Neil’s technical background has enabled him to act as an interface between R&D and business development, developing new opportunities for Oxitec’s current and future biotechnology offerings.

Neil lives in Oxford with his wife and two children.