Direct the overall structure, design, execution, and reporting of all molecular biology operations and establishing standard laboratory practices while utilizing the Benchling Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS). Drive innovation through plasmid design, high-throughput cloning techniques, and novel approaches to mutagenesis to facilitate the production of gene mutation libraries, expression vectors, and DNA-based reporter assays for the GigaAssay by utilizing cutting edge technology in molecular biology. The gene mutation libraries that are produced can be comprised of single- and multi-amino acid substitutions within full-length coding sequences, ligand chimeras, as well as nucleotide substitutions within promoter and 3’ untranslated regions. All plasmid DNA molecules within these libraries are tagged with unique molecular identifiers for the ability to quantify data from numerous variant replicates in parallel, leading to high performing statistical analysis data that is generated from the GigaAssay with results that go beyond expectation.★ Designed and successfully executed a novel method for producing mutation libraries with reduced occurrence of unexpected mutations while maintaining ultra-high cloning efficiency leading to coverage that is superior to other commercially available sources of mutation libraries.★ Established protocols with increased efficiency for generating high quality targeted NGS libraries and DNA fragments for long-read PacBio sequencing.★ Conceptualized and am currently managing the organizational structure for laboratory records of Heligenics including the tracking of reagents, supplies, biological samples, chemicals, etc. using Benchling LIMS to ensure everything in the laboratory is kept organized and properly documented.★ Oversee purchasing and receiving to ensure supplies are organized and in stock to ensure all lines of production in the laboratory continue without interruption.

Drawing on nearly two decades of strategic leadership and experience, I have led the scientific team through effective management, strategic planning, and improved laboratory practices by adopting a lean process to eliminate wasteful practices and maximizing efficiency. The results include driving discovery of novel therapies for aging-related diseases in humans using small-molecule drug discovery, nutraceutical research, and viral vector gene therapy. The following are highlights of some of my accomplishments:★ Resolved budget concerns by decreasing unnecessary expenditures by 25% to retain current workforce.★ Streamlined drug discovery by redesigning data structure to improve workflow and efficiency and upgraded data analysis capabilities by migrating high-throughput screening data into R Programming environment.★ Strengthened intellectual property by patenting innovative concepts for telomerase-activating technology.★ Optimized laboratory workflow efficiency and reduced time spent on non-critical steps by 40 percent.★ Designed and constructed over 50 rAAV-based plasmids (expression, Rep, Cap, Baculovirus) for AAV gene therapy development.

I developed an efficient and effective multi-disciplinary network of 20 highly skilled employees from compound management, mammalian cell culture, lab automation, and data science to screen over 300,000 small molecules using Biomek FX, LightCycler 480, and Envision hardware at a rate of 10,000 compounds/week. Some of my accomplishments as Research Scientist also include:★ Optimizing quality control practices, improving workflow efficiency and data analytics, and training 3-6 employees per week in all areas of drug screening operations. ★ Designing and implementing high-throughput assays, including cell-based assays for small-molecule screening, and identifying more than 1,700 novel telomerase activating small molecules covering 30 unique structure classes leading to the development of TAM-818 and IsaGenesis® months ahead of schedule.★ Conceptualizing, qualifying, and validating a multiplexed cell-based RT-qPCR high-throughput drug screening assay to detect hTERT mRNA and reference gene expression as low as 0.005 mRNA copies/cell, utilizing magnetic oligo(dT) beads in 96-well format mRNA extractions, custom designed TaqMan assays, and cell-based viability assays in tandem.★ Moving research forward by constructing cDNA libraries of treated compounds for transcriptome analysis.★ Boosting drug efficacy by providing valuable data to design over 400 custom small molecules based on SAR.

As Scientist, I utilized techniques in molecular biology, cell biology, tissue culture, protein chemistry, and assay development to execute four research projects to discover transcription factors repressing hTERT gene expression in normal human somatic cells. I was also recognized as a leader in molecular biology with unparalleled efficiency in laboratory practices. Some of my other accomplishments include:★ Successfully mapping hundreds of mutations in telomerase promoter.★ Discovering transcription factor LSF binding to putative repressor DNA binding site in hTERT promoter through protein purification followed by protein sequencing. I utilized Fast Protein Liquid Chromatography, Electro-Mobility Shift Assays, and GC-MS.★ Implementing RNAi (siRNA, lentiviral shRNA vectors) to reduce expression of candidate repressor proteins in vitro, and incorporated RT-qPCR into research to quantify expression of genes flanking hTERT gene on Chromosome 5p15.33.★ Employing UNIX-based programming to perform DNA sequence analysis and contig assembly.★ Creating numerous mutants of the RNA component of telomerase currently being investigated as anti-cancer therapeutics.★ Co-inventing a drug screening assay using the mutant RNA component of telomerase, designed/constructed 2,400+ cloning/expression plasmids, including 600+ transient expression plasmids for telomerase promoter mapping, 1,000+ lentivirus-based plasmids for cell-line development in cell biology, 500+ shRNA lentivirus-based plasmids to attenuate expression of putative telomerase repressors, and 300+ plasmids for collaborations with outside labs.★ Utilizing the Oligo program to design over 1,500 PCR primers for gene cloning and plasmid construction projects and over 100 customized TaqMan assays for qPCR studies.★ Improving DNA cloning efficiency by 80 percent by refining the technique of purifying and concentration of DNA fragments from agarose gels.

Recognized by leadership as best employee in molecular biology with unparalleled efficiency, completing complex plasmid construction projects while generating 3,000+ plasmids to characterize the hTERT minimal promoter months ahead of schedule. ★ Mentored 8 students from the University of Nevada in site-directed mutagenesis, plasmid extractions, restriction digests, gel electrophoresis.

Awarded internship to provide critical support to the molecular biology lab by performing plasmid extractions and constructions, restriction digests, ligation, PCR-TOPO cloning, and agarose gel electrophoresis.

Established core laboratory techniques while identifying gene complements to mutations associated with the Endoplasmic-Reticulum Associated Degradation pathway in yeast.