Professional Growth by Connecting with Biopharma Industry Scientists
UBRP Students at BEPA Conference. Front from left to right: Aruna Sreenivasan, Chris Fan, Mohima Ali, Back from left to right: Somto Ike, Aryan Pandey, Jake Shaw, and Malcolm Barrios
Series of 4 Photos of UBRP Students at BEPA Conference
This semester, I had the pleasure of attending the 2025 Hybrid US Bioassay Conference hosted by the BioPharmaceutical Emerging Best Practices Association (BEBPA) here in Tucson. This national conference is intended for biopharmaceutical industry professionals for the discussion of innovative solutions to scientific challenges. The topics covered center on the choice, design, evaluation, and improvement of cell-based assays. Presentations covered roadmaps of bioassay design, overcoming regulatory challenges, and techniques in biostatistics, automation, and AI. Companies participating included Genetech, Pfizer, Biogen, Merck, Novo Nordsk, NIST, Teva Pharmacueticals, Kala Bio Inc., Sangamo Therapeutics, aTyr, SVAR, Abzena, Labcorp, and Agilent.
I was honored to be invited to an in-person networking session to connect with industry scientists. There, I presented a brief introduction to myself and my research on the design of molecular strategies to selectively deprive cancer cells of iron. My research frequently employs cell-based assays and related techniques. Connecting directly with industry professionals allowed me to build valuable connections for the future.
Along with myself, the conference was attended by UBRP students Aruna Sreenivasan, Ade Ayaji, Mohima Ali, Somto Ike, Aryan Pandey, Chris Fan, and Malcolm Barrios.