Convergence of Engineering and Biology
I am excited to share that I have joined Sana Biotechnology as a Vice President within SanaX-- the innovative research arm of the company - where I will lead a group focused on engineering next generation, human pluripotent stem cell technologies. I feel incredibly fortunate to be able to pursue this unique opportunity at this stage of my professional career. I am eager to work with the fantastic (and rapidly growing) team of people that Sana has recruited to create future cell and gene medicines.
I also want to thank the many friends and colleagues who supported the lab and myself when we first started at Georgia Tech in 2004, and also after we moved to the Gladstone Institutes and UCSF seven years ago. The combined experiences of innovating platform technologies for scalable stem cell bioprocessing at GT with mechanistic understanding and cellular engineering of pluripotent co-emergence and morphogenesis at Gladstone and UCSF have aptly prepared me for this new challenge.
Lastly, at a time like this, I cannot help but think about my dear friend and mentor, Bob Nerem, and what he would say. Bob made several bold moves in his career based upon his own barometer, which resulted in his ability to significantly influence the trajectory of tissue engineering, stem cells, and regenerative medicine. He achieved these feats by unselfishly bringing good people together, and mentoring and challenging individuals to be their best. I hope that I can honor Bob’s spirit in a similar way in my new role by identifying new avenues to interact and collaborate with friends in academia and industry.
