Kevin introduced today’s speaker: Michael Tempesta, PhD, who is a natural-product chemist and biotech executive. He began with a little about himself: he was the eldest of six, grew up in the Minneapolis area; his dad was very busy trying to support them all, but he was a property manager who got five chemistry sets when he was younger.
He was the last in the draft during Vietnam, and a conscientious objector who liked the country enough to get drafted, but he wasn’t carrying a gun so they made him a medic. He was in the 101st Airborne Unit in the Army, trained to go to Israel; he swore he’d never go back to Minnesota even though he entered the University of Minnesota and got a bachelor’s degree in chemistry. A friend persuaded him to go to Arizona where he got his master’s degree and PhD in organic chemistry in three years, and worked in structural analysis trying to identify natural compounds; working with medicinal plants, fungi and the like. He published many graduate-level papers, got two degrees in three years, and was snapped up by what he calls “the best natural products chemistry professor in the U.S.” who looked at his record and said “You’re mine;” he had just opened up a research institute in Japan. He was invited to talk at the University of Missouri; “they offered me a job and I took it,” and was a young professor for years until he left to start a company.
The students in his international group there worked with natural products; one of them was from Peru (students worked on projects with the natural resources from their home areas) and hers ended up being a drug that had powerful respiratory effects. He left the university and started a company here, got on the public market; and the drug got approval…
“Not everything turns out to be a success;” he said; so he showed on paper some examples of complicated marine molecules for which he was able to figure out the structure based on spectroscopic data. He also showed a marine natural product that is poisonous that he said ended up being involved with HIV and anti-cancer treatments.
Some of his discoveries are still getting approvals and others have been used in medical treatments; in instances where the gut can repair itself, or to slow down inflammations.
He was asked how did he get from discovering to isolating a treatment agent. He showed a folk remedy in Peru famous for wound healing but found that the molecules did not get absorbed well in the bloodstream, so they won’t “get you better if you have a cold or the flu.” That led to him discussing a sophisticated South American folk remedy.
He discussed Shaman Pharmaceuticals that he had started, and that had gotten funded to the a Hollywood opening of a film during which he was able to meet Sean Connery, a “real medicine man.” He called that “one of my life events.”
He spoke of a company he developed which produced a nice booster used in a cold and flu products. He has worked with a lot of nonprofits around the world, and admitted that “my life isn’t going to last forever,” but it’s “doing good.”
Asked if he went to other countries to learn about their natural remedies, he said there’s a group of people called ethnobotanists who bring out remedies. He said that this involves a lot of field work, and there are some, such as a fish oil or a green tea used to treat genital warts, that have gotten approved.
He spoke of a cranberry product used for UTIs, and mentioned a paper published in 2007 along the same lines. Kevin supported cranberry juice for good health and Michael agreed, going on to the healing effects of natural remedies.
Besides cranberry extract, he spoke of products for sports use, such as one that kept them from going bankrupt. They have now developed products for use to benefit muscles.
He spoke highly of products that have been out for a long time, i.e. for Americans who like herbs but don’t want to take pills. They would prefer teas or tinctures, or raw plant materials; but these, even when they’re world-class products, don’t do well in the U.S. One company made those from trees, and “that goes back a long way.”
He acknowledged that there are products available here that treat conditions such as cold, flu and UTI; but he and his business partner who is a physician and an MBA agree that “we want a drug-like effect; we want things to work.” He listed four products sold on Amazon on their Web site; he mentioned one that’s good for memory and vision enhancement, that contains blueberry and cranberry, and is a drug approved in Italy. Cranberry, he said, is a $150 million market; there are supplements, mostly “just junk;” with a little cranberry stuff in there but …
Kevin asked if the FDA governs all these products. Michael said, theoretically yes, but once everyone in the world starts selling stuff on Amazon, their lawyers told them “we” have to involve the FDA, so FDA has taken a backseat and Amazon is trying to bring order to the selling of the products.
“Amazon is pulling them off?” Kevin asked. Yes, Michael responded, offering the opinion that the sellers are “amateurs,” just trying to make money.
Irwin asked if that meant cranberries in a natural state, how that began and if the berries are sour to the point of being inedible. Michael outlined the process; starting with pure cranberry juice sent to be processed in Germany. He spoke of the benefits of cranberries and blueberries for good health (blueberries are “nature’s most powerful anti-inflam and antioxidant,” safe and good for mental health.) He encouraged getting the word out.
Irwin asked about double-blind clinical studies, and Michael replied that the studies are incomplete, and he hoped to see word get out that “this stuff’s smokin!”
Question: How much of these things does he take each day? Answer: One or two, these are very important, he said, and added elderberries to that list.
He was asked, how does cranberry fight infection? Michael compared cranberries favorably to regular drugs, or “actually better.” He said studies have been sent to the FDA but implied they were not taken very seriously.
Normally, he said, he gives this talk to investors, scientists or chemists, and encouraged the listeners to learn more about these things. He spoke of his own experience eight years ago when he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. He learned everything about these and natural remedies, his business partner was a cancer survivor, and Michael lived close to UCSF, all of which helped him learn about the condition. He said that some studies were funded by drug companies wanting to sell something; he had a stem cell transplant, which he didn’t recommend since “almost dying is not the easiest way to get focus,” and spoke of being part of a group of friends who had survived similar experiences.
Hearty applause followed his presentation. He added, “Trying new things, it’s okay, it’s okay, but (being) passionate about something, as long as it’s not hurting anybody else and if it benefits other people, it’s fantastic. Just be passionate.” He added, such as the Corvette he’s had since college.
Asking about advancements in cancer treatments, he said he felt “there’s going to be a genetically engineered vaccine … for getting rid of all cancers, coming in 10 years. “That’s where the field’s going.”
He added that his dentist is happy about his dental health, and that what he does also works for dogs.
He said learning about the balance between the aerobic and anaerobic bugs in your mouth drives what happens in your gut and gets into your brain chemistry as well.
He said his desired legacy is to have Zantrim (sp?) come out with a multivitamin that has enough dietary polyphenols (sp?); otherwise, how can all of us eat the Mediterranean diet? A healthy diet, he said, is having a good balance of high fiber, lots of fluids, ideally 200 mgs (?) of polyphenols a day, mild exercise and a little more social-environment connections.
Warren asked, does he support one or two (alcoholic) drinks a day, or not having it for breakfast? Michael said there’s good polyphenols in wine, tea, and coffee; he again supported having fiber, liquids, phenols and physical and social connection without hurting anybody. “That’s a good thing.”
He spoke of the “Fifty people who care” movement taking hold now, encouraged getting local folks and businesses on board with that, mentioned getting grants from those fifty. He recalled how he’d seen that work in Cumberland, a Minnesota community about the size of Half Moon Bay, and how it could make a big difference.
He was glad to hear that 15 children would be inoculated against polio in his name.
Club Meeting, February 5, 2026
John Evans led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Club President Kevin O’Brien noted that there were several absences today, unfortunately as they would miss a great program. He thanked Karen Senffner for filling in as greeter today and noted there was no motivational message as Karen didn’t know she would be coming to the meeting. For the benefit of newer members, he talked about Rotary, noting that Rotary’s areas of focus were health, education, clean water, and most importantly, peace. So, to remember that, he led the club in singing three verses of “Give Peace a Chance.”
He sent the polio jar around to collect donations. He welcomed today’s attendees and acknowledged relatives of members who had been ill, including Irwin’s wife Nancy, who is optimistic about her recovery from a broken patella and had surgery. There were no visiting Rotarians. Guests included Dennis Fisher with Susan Kealey, Michael Osborne’s son Drew and Stacy’s husband Doug Mallon. Kevin mentioned that next week’s speaker had cancelled; someone suggested that we could do tap dancing instead. Mary Rogren announced that the daughter of our bookkeeper Dolores Goulet is recovering, and Kevin sent our best regards. Clark Hobbie spoke of the National Review having published a special issue noting the 250th birthday of America. Irwin Cohen said that club member Ed Daniels is in a cast for a broken pinkie. Members discussed sending a proposed email to prospective members to get contact information, and then following up.
John Evans said that Pascal has moved on to his second host family, Lisa and Jesse Schick, who live near his first host family.
Kevin announced that it was time for trivia, and he’d put out some candy for correct answers. Since the Super Bowl is this Sunday, we must have trivia questions about football. First, what is an NFL football made of? Answer: cowhide. Question: Where are they made? Answer: All made in Ohio. Question: What’s the space between the NFL goal posts? Answer: Eighteen feet, six inches. Question: How high is the crossbar? Answer: Same height as an NBA basket, ten feet high. Question: Who played in the first Super Bowl? (Answers for fun included Guy Lombardi and Clark Kent.) Real answer: First of all, the first Super Bowl wasn’t called the Super Bowl, but the NFL Championship game between the AFC and the NFC – Green Bay Packers versus Kansas City Chiefs. Question: The coach for the winning team became probably the most famous coach in NFL history; what was his name? (Not Guy Lombardo the band leader, as someone called out) but Vince Lombardi. The Vince Lombardi trophy for the winner is named after him. Question: When did the Seahawks join the NFL? Answer: 1976; they’ve been in the league longer than most people, Kevin said. Question: When did the Patriots start playing, what were they called, and when did they join the NFL? Answer: When the team called the Boston Patriots, in 1959, moved to Foxborough, Mass. in the 1970s and changed their name to the New England Patriots. Question: Which NFL team has won the most Super Bowls? Answer: The Patriots and the Steelers; each won six. Question: Two teams tied with five wins, who were they? Answer: The 49ers and the Cowboys. That’d be all the great NFL trivia questions Kevin had, he said, but the entertainment value of calling Vince Lombardi, Guy Lombardi, is priceless. You forgot to ask who’s playing at Halftime? Susan Kealey pointed out, Bad Bunny.