A day in the life of a biopharmaceutical senior scientist

Dr Jana Broecker is a senior scientist in the Biochemistry Department at Sosei Heptares in the UK, where she is part of a team that develops small-molecule therapeutics using protein structural information. Jana graduated as a Diploma Engineer from the Technical University Berlin (Germany) and did her PhD with the University of Kaiserslautern on the biophysical quantification of membrane-protein stability. She also completed post-doctoral research at the University of Toronto (Canada), where she spearheaded the optimization of membrane-protein crystallization using polymer-bound lipid nanodiscs and where she also developed a method that avoids crystal harvesting.

First person – Helena Rannikmae

ABSTRACTFirst Person is a series of interviews with the first authors of a selection of papers published in Journal of Cell Science, helping early-career researchers promote themselves alongside their papers. Helena Rannikmae is first author on ‘Mutational inactivation of Apc in the intestinal epithelia compromises cellular organisation’, published in JCS. Helena conducted the research described in this article while a PhD student in Dr Marc de la Roche's lab at the Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, UK. She is now a Senior Scientist in the Complex In Vitro Models group at GlaxoSmithKline, Stevenage, UK, using complex in vitro models to study health and disease.

Chester Receives 2019 Paul G. Silver Award for Outstanding Scientific Service

Judith Savaso Chester received the 2019 Paul G. Silver Award for Outstanding Scientific Service at AGU's Fall Meeting 2019, held 9–13 December in San Francisco, Calif. The award is given annually and recognizes “significant contributions to the fields of geodesy, seismology, or tectonophysics from a mid-career or senior scientist” through “mentorship of early-career scientists, leadership on community research initiatives, or other collaborative research efforts.”

Gopalswamy Receives 2019 Space Physics and Aeronomy Richard Carrington Education and Public Outreach Award

Nat “Gopal” Gopalswamy received the 2019 Space Physics and Aeronomy Richard Carrington (SPARC) Education and Public Outreach Award at AGU’s Fall Meeting 2019, held 9–13 December in San Francisco, Calif. The award is “presented annually to a senior scientist for significant impact on the public’s understanding of space physics and aeronomy through their education or outreach activities.”

Vilas Receives 2019 Fred Whipple Award

Faith Vilas received the 2019 Fred Whipple Award at AGU’s Fall Meeting 2019, held 9–13 December in San Francisco, Calif. The award recognizes “significant contributions to the field of planetary science from a midcareer or senior scientist.”

A day in the life of a Senior Scientist

Dr Cristina Gutierrez-Caballero is a molecular and cellular biologist. She graduated with a BSc in Biology from the University of Salamanca (Spain), where she subsequently completed her PhD studying proteins involved in cell division and their role in cancer, aging and longevity. After her PhD, Dr Gutierrez-Caballero continued her research in cell division at the University of Warwick as a postdoctoral researcher, funded by Cancer Research UK. More recently, her interests have transitioned towards translational work and drug discovery, and in 2017, she started a position as a Senior Scientist in Exonate Ltd, an early-stage biopharmaceutical company that develops novel drugs to treat age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Lorenza Giannella (Training Manager, Biochemical Society) spoke with her about her work.