1962-1966 Professional education as laboratory technician (textile chemistry and dye-stuff application) at CIBA Ltd. in Basel1967-1970. Continuing education (Swiss maturity certificate) and professional work at CIBA Ltd. and at the Cantonal Hospital Basel (clinical chemistry)

1970-1980 Studies in chemistry, physics and mathematics at the University of Basel. Diploma in Chemistry (University of Basel). Swiss certificate in Molecular Biology (Swiss Commission for Molecular Biology, SKMB). PhD in Microbiology (University of Basel). Postdoctoral fellowship (with Prof. Jakob Nüesch, Ciba-Geigy Ltd.)

1982-2008 Head Bioreactions at CIBA-GEIGY (Central Research and Pharma Divison) and later at NOVARTIS (Pharma, NIBR). Lecturer at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETHZ). Award of the Association of Swiss Chemists1988 Habilitation in Microbiology (University of Basel). Sabbatical in Japan (International Research Laboratories of CIBA-GEIGY Ltd., Takarazuka). Programme Director of the Swiss Priority Programme Biotechnology of the Swiss National Science Foundation (SPP Biotech)

1992-2015 Member of the Swiss CoordinationCommittee for Biotechnology SKB. Member of the “Lateral Think Tank" of the Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences SATW. Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences SATW. Steering Committee Member of TA Swiss (National Center for Technology Assessment). Member of the Commission for Technology and Innovation (Swiss Innovation Promotion Agency, CTI).

Since 2016/17 “Senator” for special task in life sciences and international cooperation

1999-2011 Professor for Biotechnology at the University of Basel, now Professor emeritus

2002 Individual Member of the Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences (SATW)

2002-2006 Member of the Program Board “Sustainable Bioproduction” (German Ministry for Education and Science, BMBF)

2003-2015 Head of CTI Biotech (Swiss Innovation Promotion Agency CTI) and CTI delegate to the National Research Council (Swiss National Science Foundation), Division IV Oriented Research

2004-2015 Member of the Swiss Agricultural Research Council

2005-2017 Vice President of the Swiss Biotech Association SBA

since 2008 Founder and Managing Director of Ghisalba Life Sciences GmbH

since 2017 Honary Member of the Swiss Biotech Association SBA