Shawn Baker

Shawn Baker, Bachelor of Science,
Honors Tutorial College, 1992
Biotechnology Researcher

My career as a research scientist started as an undergraduate at Ohio University in the labs of Dr. Cohn and Dr. Mitchell. It was here that I got my first real taste of what scientific research was all about. I learned a lot of lab techniques and received a great scientific education, both of which have served me well throughout my career. I continued my education in graduate school at the University of California, Davis, where I earned my Ph.D. studying the genetics of plant reproduction. Graduate school built on what I had learned at OU, broadening my research experience and preparing me for a career in the biotechnology industry.

As a research scientist working for a small biotechnology company, I get to work on a lot of exciting projects. I work with the "RNA Expression Profiling" group, and our goal is to develop technology that can simultaneously monitor the expression levels (the amount that a particular gene is turned "on" or "off") of hundreds of genes in hundreds of samples (for example, from hundreds of patients).

One way that we envision this type of technology being used would be for "personalized medicine". Currently, many potential medicines never make it to the patients because they've been shown to be dangerous to a small percentage of the population. If there is no way to tell which people cannot tolerate the drug, it is likely that an otherwise useful drug will be abandoned so as to ensure that this small minority of patients is not put at undue risk. Using RNA Expression Profiling, it may be possible to prescreen people, allowing them to know which medicines are likely to work well for them and which are potentially dangerous. Therefore, medicines that would otherwise be abandoned could be used only for the appropriate patients.

As a research scientist, I get to work on a variety of different things from day to day. I spend nearly half of my time in the lab conducting experiments. This can be as simple as preparing chemical solutions or as complex as processing hundreds of samples with a robot, generating 10 million data points in a single day. Another large portion of my time is spent at the computer, either analyzing the data generated in the lab or designing new experiments. I also spend time discussing experimental design, results and long term planning with my co-workers. A few times a year I travel to conferences where I present some of the work our group has done and listen to the progress of colleagues at other companies and institutions.

Working as a scientist in the biotechnology industry is a lot of fun because I get to help develop and work with cutting-edge technology that simply isn't available anywhere else. Also, because of the large scope of the projects, I get to work closely with people from a number of different disciplines such as engineering, chemistry, and marketing. Through these interactions, it's possible to gain a much wider perspective and continue to learn about new fields. At the same time, I enjoy teaching others more about the particulars of my profession. This collaborative environment makes coming to work every day all the more fun!


			Shawn Baker, Bachelor of Science, Honors Tutorial College, 1992 Biotechnology Researcher My career as a research scientist started as an undergraduate at Ohio University in the labs of Dr. Cohn and Dr. Mitchell. It was here that I got my first real taste of what scientific research was all about. I learned a lot of lab techniques and received a great scientific education, both of which have served me well throughout my career. I continued my education in graduate school at the University of California, Davis, where I earned my Ph.D. studying the genetics of plant reproduction. Graduate school built on what I had learned at OU, broadening my research experience and preparing me for a career in the biotechnology industry. As a research scientist working for a small biotechnology company, I get to work on a lot of exciting projects. I work with the "RNA Expression Profiling" group, and our goal is to develop technology that can simultaneously monitor the expression levels (the amount that a particular gene is turned "on" or "off") of hundreds of genes in hundreds of samples (for example, from hundreds of patients). One way that we envision this type of technology being used would be for "personalized medicine". Currently, many potential medicines never make it to the patients because they've been shown to be dangerous to a small percentage of the population. If there is no way to tell which people cannot tolerate the drug, it is likely that an otherwise useful drug will be abandoned so as to ensure that this small minority of patients is not put at undue risk. Using RNA Expression Profiling, it may be possible to prescreen people, allowing them to know which medicines are likely to work well for them and which are potentially dangerous. Therefore, medicines that would otherwise be abandoned could be used only for the appropriate patients. As a research scientist, I get to work on a variety of different things from day to day. I spend nearly half of my time in the lab conducting experiments. This can be as simple as preparing chemical solutions or as complex as processing hundreds of samples with a robot, generating 10 million data points in a single day. Another large portion of my time is spent at the computer, either analyzing the data generated in the lab or designing new experiments. I also spend time discussing experimental design, results and long term planning with my co-workers. A few times a year I travel to conferences where I present some of the work our group has done and listen to the progress of colleagues at other companies and institutions. Working as a scientist in the biotechnology industry is a lot of fun because I get to help develop and work with cutting-edge technology that simply isn't available anywhere else. Also, because of the large scope of the projects, I get to work closely with people from a number of different disciplines such as engineering, chemistry, and marketing. Through these interactions, it's possible to gain a much wider perspective and continue to learn about new fields. At the same time, I enjoy teaching others more about the particulars of my profession. This collaborative environment makes coming to work every day all the more fun!
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