This blog was authored by 2023 SOT Diversity Initiatives Career Development Award recipient Jada Spady, and I am pleased to share it on her behalf.
Thanks to the support of the 2023 SOT Diversity Initiatives Career Development Award, I had the opportunity to complete a summer internship at Genentech in South San Francisco, California, as a Clinical Pharmacology Intern! Genentech is a leading biotechnology company that recently became renowned for its breakthroughs in recombinant DNA, allowing for the creation of genetically engineered drugs and the production of human proteins. For 12 weeks, I was able to work with some of the brightest minds in the industry and understand how each department collaborates to transform a molecule into an approved therapy.
At the beginning of the summer, I received a warm welcome from many dedicated scientists at the company and was eager to tour the vibrant campus located off the San Francisco Bay. Receiving the support from SOT allowed me to travel out there and achieve my goal to perform cutting-edge research in industry.
Alongside new discoveries being made in the world of medicine, the goal for inclusive research is pertinent in order for all communities to benefit from scientific advances. After coming together with the pharmacology team, my research goal was to highlight the importance of diversity and inclusivity within US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA)–approved clinical trials at Genentech. My project focused on quantifying population pharmacokinetics (PopPK) covariates that had a significance on diversity factors (i.e., race, ethnicity, sex, age, and region) of US FDA–approved oncology and non-oncology biologics. Ultimately, the goal of the project was to provide therapeutic evidence on toxicological safety and dose adjustment dependent PK covariates to non-generalize a patient and close healthcare disparities.
My passion lies between understanding how drugs and chemicals interact with biological systems and being able to take it a step forward by focusing on the adverse effects and safety risk assessments of these compounds in industry. With the support of the SOT Diversity Initiatives Career Development award, I was able to get to California and embark on this new journey, explore a new scope of research, and see what San Francisco has to offer. I was able to share my findings with numerous faculty, communicate my passion for diversity and medicinal safety by creating a poster, and present a poster during Genentech’s Research & Development Intern Poster Symposium.
Overall, my internship at Genentech has been a pivotal step in my academic and career journey. It has equipped me with a deeper understanding of the biotechnology industry, strengthened my professional skills, and provided me with the mentorship for which I was looking. San Francisco was a thriving area, and I was able to make friends and build my network. I also got to sightsee by visiting Napa Valley, California, driving across the Golden Gate Bridge, and even touring Alcatraz Island!
Thanks to this award, I was able to complete my dream internship. Through the program, I sharpened my skills on how to conduct research in industry and was able to leverage my experience to obtain a research role at Merck in the Neuroscience Department post-graduation. All in all, as I look ahead to my future endeavors, I am grateful that the knowledge and skills acquired during this internship will continue to guide me in my pursuit of innovating medicine for all communities. This experience gave me a huge jumpstart in my career and got me excited about continuing my education—I plan on getting my PhD in pharmacology in the near future.
Jada Spady is a 2023 recipient of the SOT Diversity Initiatives Career Development Award. In this blog post, Ms. Spady shares her experience of receiving the award and using it toward participating in the Clinical Pharmacology Summer Internship at Genentech last summer. To learn more about the Diversity Initiatives Career Development Award, visit the SOT website.
Ms. Spady presented her undergraduate research at the 2022 SOT Annual Meeting and ToxExpo and has since completed her BS in pharmacology and toxicology from Pennsylvania State University. She is now in a research role at Merck in the Neuroscience Department and has plans to pursue a PhD in pharmacology.
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