Our Team

Dr. Vieira has worked at ALS TDI since 2001 and has deep ties to the ALS/MND community. With nearly a decade in ALS research, he has served in many capacities advancing scientific efforts at the Institute. He has been integral to the design, execution, and oversight of over 1,000 preclinical studies, the majority of which directly relate to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. He worked closely with former ALS TDI President Sean F. Scott to help develop the gold standard for preclinical survival testing using the G93A-SOD1 mouse model. Since presenting the study design guidelines to the international ALS research community at meetings and symposiums, much of the ALS research community has adopted them. Additionally, he has designed and validated a novel surgical method for constant infusion of therapeutics to the intrathecal space of mice. Currently, he manages the scientific project portfolio at ALS TDI, including both therapeutic and technology development projects. His previous research experiences include work in the University of Florida Condensed Matter Physics Lab and the University of Florida Vascular Surgery Lab. A native of Massachusetts, Vieira received a Bachelors Degree in biological engineering at the University of Florida and his medical degree from Harvard Medical School.

For four years John co-lead Biogen Idec's therapeutic discovery program in ALS and motor neuron disease. An expert in gene therapy for motor neuron disease, John has developed several innovative, patented techniques that have led to gene expression levels far beyond current published studies. At ALS TDI, John is expanding his work in retrograde transport of gene therapies injected into muscle, as well as direct intrathecal delivery of promising vectors — crucial in the validation of pivotal pathways. John received his doctorate in biochemistry from Boston University and pursued post-doctoral study at Harvard Medical School.

In his unique role at ALS TDI, Ken ensures the ongoing success of ALS TDI's pivotal mouse studies program. Ken manages all laboratory functions including staffing, working with breeders and ensuring ALS TDI maintains the highest operational and process standards. In addition, Ken manages mouse studies, initiates and oversees all studies in the mouse research data system (LIMS), does formulations and creates daily drug solutions. A close friend of ALS patient Stephen Heywood, Ken discontinued his work in marine biology at the University of Alaska in 2000 to join ALS TDI as a formulations scientist. Ken's previous research experience includes the molecular examination of starvation markers in larval stage cod at the University of Rhode Island. Ken also serves as an officer of ALS TDI as the Assistant Secretary of the Corporation.

Vladimir analyzes data generated by high-throughput genomic technologies in order to discover the mechanism of ALS. He assists other ALS TDI scientists in accessing and statistical interpretation of the experimental data. Vladimir has 10 years of industrial experience in integration and analyzing biomedical data. He occupied various senior level scientific positions at LION Bioscience and ALTANA Research Institute. He received his Ph.D. in Chemical Enzymology from Moscow State University, Russia.

Jerry manages and contributes to the productivity of ALS TDI's in vitro, RNA and cell-based assay validation group. Jerry's team is one of three that compose the discovery and pre-clinical research pipeline at ALS TDI. The group is responsible for the upstream activities of reagent and therapeutic validation, mostly achieved by designing and performing in vitro, cell-based assays. His team is also charged with downstream analysis of samples collected from our pre-clinical studies and data generation from the same. To accomplish the upstream cell-based validation activities, the group uses traditional cell biology techniques. For validation and downstream data generation and analyses, the team is responsible for operating automated liquid handling, real-time quantitative PCR and high throughput (96-peg) gene expression profiling technologies, all integrated into our custom-built LIMS platform. Jerry coordinates the group's integration in the discovery research pipeline, manages the day-to-day activities of the team's scientists, performs experiments as needed and contributes intellectually, in conjunction with other senior staff, to determining the direction of the ALS TDI's research program. Prior to joining ALS TDI, Jerry spent four years at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals gaining substantial experience in drug discovery. He earned his doctorate in molecular medicine, specializing in neurodegeneration research, at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Formerly a member of Biogen Idec's ALS discovery program, Monica has 18 years of basic research experience in stem cell research and animal surgeries in diabetes and Parkinson's disease. She has spent five years focusing on HIV research at the New England Medical Center Hospital. She has extensive experience in the Cambridge biotechnology community, having held a senior position at Curis, where she filed successful patents. Monica is an expert in advanced confocal microscopy techniques, fluorescence, in-situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, and cutting edge 3D histology using polymerized tissue sections. Her novel techniques include quantification of motor neurons, extraction of complex nerve assemblies, and imaging of ALS neuromuscular junctions. She received an undergraduate degree in microbiology from the University of Massachusetts, and is pursuing a graduate degree in biology through the Harvard Extension School.

With ten years of post graduate research experience in nerve regeneration, AIDS, inflammatory diseases, and cancers, Dr. Li brings critical knowledge and technical expertise to the molecular biology research team at ALS TDI. Guangde has worked previously in both biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies including AstraZeneca, Peptimmune, and Wyeth Inc. He has achieved advanced technical skills in molecular biology, cell biology, and animal surgeries. In the academic setting, Guangde spent several years at Children's Hospital in Boston focusing on nerve regeneration projects and doing in vitro drug screening using goldfish retinal ganglion cell based assays. Dr. Li graduated from Shandong Medical College and originally practiced medicine in China.

Ricky brings to Institute more than twenty years experience in research and industrial histopathology. Previously, he spent five years at Biogen Idec, Inc. as a histopathology supervisor. He also has over fifteen years research experience in nerve regeneration, inflammatory diseases, and cancer biology while working at Curis, and M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. Ricky received his BS in Biology and Histotechnology from Kean University of New Jersey. He and his family live in Andover, MA.

Beth brings years of pharmaceutical and biotechnology experience to ALS TDI. Her background is in inflammation research. She has worked for a number of companies within the industry, most recently with Atlanta Research Institute in Waltham, Mass. Beth has played two roles at the Institute since coming aboard in July of 2007. In her role as Project Manager Beth's goal is to make the scientists' jobs easier by tracking the development of projects at ALS TDI. In her second role Beth arranges for ALS clinics across the USA to collect tissue samples and send them to the Institute to be studied. Beth received her BA in Microbiology from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and lives in Brookline, Mass.

Reenu joined ALS TDI in the fall of 2005 and has participated in various projects in gene expression including the validation of the transcriptome analysis of the ALS mouse. Previously, she studied at Oklahoma State University where she earned an MS in Biomedical Sciences after finishing a BS in Computer Science. Reenu grew up in Zambia, on the African continent, where she enjoyed playing soccer and rugby.

Cindy received an undergraduate degree in Biology from Simmons College and spent 15 years in Research at biotechnology companies, including 9 years at Biogen. She was involved primarily in the discovery and testing of Immunology-based therapeutics, and has an extensive background in monoclonal antibody production and the in-vitro/in-vivo characterization of potential drugs. She took a break from biotech to nearly complete a second degree from Simmons in Nursing and to be home with her two children, Anna and Joe. At ALS TDI, Cindy works in the Pharmacology group to help evaluate in-vivo drug effects in the G93A model.

Joining ALS TDI in 2006, Shawn's role is to help build and maintain applications. Specifically, Shawn is working to expand the Web functionality of the ALS TDI drug discovery pipeline, the process database system we use to identify, evaluate, select and rank candidate drugs for testing. Shawn spent five years as a software developer at ImakeNews, where he helped clients such as Cisco Systems, Progress Software and Parametric Technology develop custom newsletters. He also has experience building AutoCAD import tools, and in QA (quality assurance.) Shawn attended Wentworth Institute of Technology.

Andy joined ALS TDI's in vivo team in 2002. Formerly an assistant in an animal facility at Harvard University, Andy's duties include administering drugs to ALS mice, scoring neurological impairment, performing surgery and collecting tissue. He manages four to six studies simultaneously, collecting and entering data into the LIMS database. In time, he will expand his surgical skills and perform intrathecal surgeries. Andy studied political science for two years at Boston College.

Josh is a Massachusetts native with 7 years experience working at ALS TDI as a Research Associate. Before coming to the Institute, Josh attended Minuteman Vocational Technical High School in Lexington, MA, where he earned a certificate in Graphic Design. Josh's family history with Huntington's Disease has given him a unique perspective and drives his desire to be a part of the effort to treat and cure devastating neurological diseases such as ALS. Since working at ALS TDI, he has earned his ALAT certification and is currently working towards a bachelors degree in biology at Northeastern University in Boston. Other than science, Josh is an avid animal lover and enjoys all things music and art. He currently calls Somerville his home.

Having lost his grandmother's cousin to ALS, Matt has been an inspired member of the animal care team at ALS TDI since 2003. His primary goal is to maintain the facility and provide clean and healthy environments for all of the mice involved in research studies. Matt grew up in Somerville, Massachusetts and pursued a certificate in graphic communications before joining the research staff at ALS TDI.

Carlos has worked with animals since he was a young boy growing up on a farm in Colombia. His father was a veterinarian and taught Carlos how to care for the diverse animals on their farm. Carlos moved to the United States is 1991 and resides in Chelsea, MA, with his wife Juliana, and their three young children, Rafael, Julian and Carlos Jr.

Yun has over 10 years of research experience in cell biology, biochemistry, molecular biology and electro-physiology. She received her Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Weill Medical School of Cornell University, where she studied G-protein signal transduction and the protein components involved in the eukaryotic DNA replication and control. She then worked in Drug Discovery and Technology Development at Sanofi-Aventis Pharmaceutical on two therapeutic areas: Oncology and Metabolic Diseases, where she gained extensive experience in target identification and validation, compound deorphaning, HTP screening and cell-based assay development.

Ping is a highly collaborative and self-motivated researcher with four years of research training at Harvard Medical School as well as six years of pharmaceutical industry experience in drug discovery and technology development projects at Sanofi-aventis. He has strong research experience in cell and molecular biology, biochemistry and biomedicine, with extensive technical skills in drug target identification and validation and in biomarker development with various cell-based assays and MSD immunoassays. His research experience also includes immunohistochemistry and confocal microscopy for human samples and animal studies. Ping joined the research team at ALS TDI in 2010, and lives in Wellesley, MA.

Dr. Jiang has over ten years of research experience in Boston University and three years in Harvard Medical School, focusing on revealing cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in regulating inflammation, cell survival, tissue injury, remodeling, and fibrosis, and identifying therapeutic targets against disease development and progression. He has strong background in signal transduction and inflammation research, with extensive research skills in biochemistry, cell and molecular biology, vascular biology, and immunotechnology. He received his Ph.D. in Medical Science from Osaka University, Japan, and pursued his post-doctoral study in Biochemistry and Vascular Biology at Boston University. Dr. Jiang joined the research team at ALS TDI in 2011.

Michelle Pflumm is a journalist interested in all things science, medicine and multimedia. She previously reported the latest news for the research journals Nature Medicine and Nature Methods. She also worked as a science writer at Children's Hospital Boston. A huge NPR fan, in 2010, she produced two science stories for WBUR's World of Ideas. She holds a B.A. in Chemistry from Haverford College, a Ph.D. in Molecular and Cellular Biology from the University of California, Berkeley and a M.S. in Science and Medical Journalism from Boston University.

Dr. Theo Hatzipetros is an in vivo pharmacologist who specializes in the field of neurodegeneration. He has extensive experience in animal research including the development of animal models of neurological diseases, PK/PD, toxicity and drug efficacy studies. Prior to joining ALS TDI, Theo worked on drug discovery for the treatment of Parkinson's Disease at FoldRx Pharmaceuticals. At ALS TDI, Theo's efforts are focused on the development of novel animal models of ALS and in evaluating therapeutic strategies for the treatment of the disease. Theo, originally from Cyprus, received his doctorate in pharmacology from Boston University School of Medicine for his thesis work on the neurotoxic effects of the psychostimulant methamphetamine.

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