What is your role at Enanta?
I’m a scientist in DMPK where I work with my team to characterize the absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion of our drug candidates to assess their safety.
Why did you join Enanta?
I have a personal connection with Enanta’s goal to develop a treatment for RSV – a virus that put my newborn preemie son in the pediatric ICU for 17 days. With this experience in my recent past, I wanted to join the company’s effort to develop a safe and effective treatment for RSV infection.
How did you get into your specific field?
I became a scientist through trial and error. As a kid, I wanted to become a veterinarian, but my first volunteer opportunity at a local clinic quickly established my lack of fortitude for this line of work. I explored other fields of science and eventually majored in biochemistry in college. In graduate school, my focus shifted to bioanalytical chemistry. DMPK is a perfect mix of biology and analytical chemistry for me.
What do you think is the most important challenge for the biopharmaceutical industry?
A major challenge for the biopharmaceutical industry will be meeting the demands of a growing global population with ever-increasing access to medical care in developing countries.
What would be the one word to describe the team at Enanta?
Transformative
What is the best career advice you got when starting out?
“Do something meaningful.” Enanta has helped cure more than one million patients with Hepatitis C virus. I love being a part of this endeavor.
What did you like to do when you were young that you wish you could do more as an adult?
Mountain biking. All my free time through high school and college was spent riding trails on my bike.
What do you do for fun when you’re not at work?
When I’m not at work, you can find me attending one of my daughter’s dance or theater performances, my son’s soccer games, or relaxing on the beach with my wife.