Pharm-ChemBio Industry Day 2020

Ron Batra, Ph.D.

(Locana)

Ranjan (Ron) Batra is an expert in modeling and therapeutics of RNA mediated disease. Ron completed his degree in Pharmacy at the University of Delhi, master’s program in pharmacology at the Ohio State University, and PhD program in molecular genetics at University of Florida where he worked on RNA biology and neuromuscular disease. Following his PhD, he delved into the mechanisms of C9orf72 ALS at Mayo Clinic, located in Jacksonville, FL. Ron was awarded the myotonic dystrophy foundation (MDF) postdoctoral fellowship and muscular dystrophy association (MDA) development grant for his work at the Laboratory of Gene Yeo at University of California San Diego, where he teamed up with Locana's cofounders for the foundational work of RNA targeting CRISPR therapeutics. Briefly, Ron worked at Verily (formerly Google Life Sciences) before joining Locana in March 2018. At Locana, Ron is the principal investigator for the MDA venture grant and is a winner of the 2019 Biocom catalyst award for exceptional leaders in California biotech under 40. 

Russell Chan, Ph.D.

(Illumina)

I graduated from UCSD in May 2016 from the Toor Lab studying RNA Crystallography. Afterwards, I began to work at Illumina, a company whose primary focus is unlocking the power of the genome through next-generation sequencing technology. I first began as a Technical Application Scientist in the Tech Support Department. My primary function was to support Illumina’s sequencing instruments to assist customers with their experiments. Through my interest in learning more about the analysis software, I transitioned to support the downstream bioinformatics pipelines. In my current role, I provide 2nd level support to Illumina’s frontline customer support to address any questions or concerns with Illumina’s analysis pipelines.

Sandra DePorter, Ph.D.

(GNF) 

Sandra DePorter is currently a Principle Scientist I in Biotherapeutics and Biotechnology at Novartis GNF. Her work focuses on protein engineering for immuno-oncology and novel technology development. She received her PhD in Chemistry from Colorado State University and completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Bioengineering at Stanford University.

 Steve Ding, Ph.D.

(Rakuten Medical)

Howdy! I'm originally from the great state of Texas where I completed my undergraduate studies at the University of Houston. After earning my PhD in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry at Yale University, I came to San Diego for a post-doc position at the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute. Since then, I've worked at Sorrento Therapeutics, Takeda, and Ambrx, and I'm currently a Senior Scientist in Protein Engineering within the CMC group at Rakuten Medical. Whether small molecules or biologics, my professional focus is to bring safe and effective therapeutics to the marketplace for the benefit of patients.

Michael Fazio, M.S.

(Ionis)

I graduated from CSUSM with a bachelors in biochemistry under the supervision of Dr. Trischman. Attended grad school at UCI, under the tutelage of Dr. Rob Spitale. In grad school, main work was focused on synthesizing modified nucleic acids for bio-orthogonal RNA studies.

I now work at Ionis Pharma. Main research task is oligonucleotide synthesis.

Karey Kowalski, Pharm.D.

(Pfizer)

Karen “Karey” Kowalski has been employed in the pharmaceutical industry for over 10 years in various roles ranging from drug formulation to preclinical DMPK to clinical pharmacology. She is currently a Clinical Pharmacologist at Pfizer in the late stage oncology group in La Jolla contributing to drug development ranging from proof of concept through post-marketing studies for various immuno-oncology compounds.

Karey was previously the Clinical Pharmacologist at Ignyta for 4.5 years focused on development and submission activities for Rozlytrek (entrectinib), which was approved by the PMDA, FDA, and EMA in 2019 in both ROS1+ non-small-cell lung cancer and NTRK fusion+ tumor agnostic indications. From 2009 to 2012, Karey was in the Pharmacokinetics and Translational Sciences Group at Ardea Biosciences, contributing to the submission of Zurampic (lesinurad) for gout; and prior to Ardea, Karey worked at Pharmatek for 1.5 years supporting drug formulation for various compounds.

As a doctoral student, Karey participated in an externship at the FDA Office of Clinical Pharmacology Pediatrics and was an intern pharmacist at City of Hope hospital in LA. Karey completed her Bachelor’s degree at the University of San Diego and PharmD degree at the University of Southern California.