Academic Credentials
  • Ph.D., Biophysics, Harvard University, 2002
  • M.S., Chemistry, Stanford University, 1997
  • B.S., Chemistry, Stanford University, 1996
Academic Appointments
  • Adjunct Associate Professor, Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, 2017-2018
  • Adjunct Research Assistant Professor, Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, 2009-2017
Professional Affiliations
  • Association for Diagnostics & Laboratory Medicine (ADLM)
  • Northeast Branch - American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

Dr. Sauer-Budge specializes in scientific challenges at the interface of biology and materials, particularly for clinical in vitro diagnostics (IVDs) and microbiology. Trained in chemistry and biophysics, she applies her interdisciplinary experience to product development, design analysis, and biological contamination investigations for the medical device, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical industries.

Dr. Sauer-Budge's expertise in IVDs (the testing and identification of biological materials), includes systems and assays to detect nucleic acids (DNA and RNA), proteins, microbes (viruses, bacteria, fungi, antimicrobial resistance), and human specimens (blood, urine, saliva, etc.). Throughout her career, she has been involved in the research and development of biosensors, assays (immunoassays, nucleic acid tests, cell-based assays), sample preparation techniques, microfluidic devices, anti-fouling coatings, wearable devices for the continuous monitoring of biomarkers, and bench-top instrumentation. She is skilled at conducting technical due diligence on IVD technologies throughout the total product lifecycle, from feasibility to regulatory submission to post-market scale-up and manufacturing.

Dr. Sauer-Budge's expertise in microbiology and human specimens is leveraged to assist clients in bioanalytical contamination investigations, including contamination from microbes (viruses, bacteria, fungi, biofilms), human specimens (e.g., blood), and other types of biological material. She also has experience in assessing the effectiveness of antimicrobial materials and coatings, disinfection protocols, and remediation activities.

Dr. Sauer-Budge works with companies and laboratories at all stages of the total product lifecycle, as well as serving as an expert witness. She is an active participant in peer review, including serving as a standing member of an NIH review committee, and has published more than 35 articles.

Before joining Exponent, Dr. Sauer-Budge led the biomedical/biotechnology group at the Fraunhofer Center for Manufacturing Innovation at Boston University for 10 years. She worked in the space between academia and industry, conducting applied research in the areas of medical diagnostics, devices, and instrumentation. She managed translational programs, helping to transition technologies from the bench through scale-up and FDA readiness. Prior to Fraunhofer, Dr. Sauer-Budge worked at BioScale, a start-up focused on commercializing a bioMEMs resonating membrane platform technology for the clinical diagnostic and food safety markets. Her graduate work was in the laboratory of Prof. Daniel Branton developing single-molecule sequencing technologies that are now commercialized by Oxford Nanopore.