Driven to Discover: A Celebration of Science

This month at Solid we are celebrating Science Month. We carve out this time annually to showcase internally not only our great science, but the scientists who are leading efforts to advance Solid’s mission. I greatly value the opportunity to listen and learn from my team as they highlight their activities to the broader company. In honor of Science Month and the incredible group of scientists I work with every day, I’ve been asked to share a bit about my career and how I arrived where I am.

When I completed my post-doctorate work, there were many scientific career paths to follow and exciting opportunities to pursue. I had spent 10 years amassing technical knowledge and laboratory experience focused on muscle function and adaption and wanted to find the best way to continue pursuit of my scientific interest that, most importantly, may ultimately have a positive impact on patients’ lives.

After a short stint in academia, I joined a large pharmaceutical company where I was afforded many opportunities to sharpen my focus and interest in muscle biology and disease, as well as other indications. It was a great place to be at the time with a lot of action and no shortage of challenges. I was involved with exciting science and took on leadership roles at various stages of drug development. I was privileged to be part of a large, dedicated team that advanced a drug candidate to clinical evaluation in Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Overall, it was a tremendous experience that immersed me in all things drug development, from discovery through clinical development and regulatory strategy to commercial considerations.

Through my work, I was introduced to Solid which, at the time, was a newly launched life sciences company that was solely focused on Duchenne. Founded by parents of a child with Duchenne, this small company with one straightforward yet challenging mission was looking to make a real difference in the lives of patients with this devastating rare disease. Transitioning to Solid presented the opportunity to take on an enormous challenge and be part of a small team that would be at the leading edge of an incredibly difficult challenge – gene therapy for Duchenne. The pieces were in place: a rationally designed, differentiated microdystrophin construct, excellent preclinical data, and the clear drive and passion of the founders to make things happen.   

Since joining Solid in 2015, I have focused on finding really good people and building and supporting a team with clear drive to get things done. We have advanced our lead program into the clinic, constantly learning along the way, and developed amazing internal expertise to support future growth and opportunities for Solid as well as individual team. Each day, the team is focused on expanding and refining our scientific knowledge, thoughtfully and deliberately amassing information, experiences, skills – whatever it takes to move closer toward our goal. As in any scientific endeavor, we have faced unexpected challenges and barriers to progress, but there is a lot of resilience and agility here, and we have likely learned more from our setbacks than from our successes.

To deliver on our mission to develop and advance meaningful therapies for patients with Duchenne, we have had to learn and become proficient at many areas. We look to be inclusive of perspectives from individuals regardless of their specialty and try to avoid operating with arbitrary silos. It is always a work in progress, but each scientist on the team is valued for their unique expertise where they contribute and are empowered to explore their own curiosity.

At Solid, not only have I been able to become part of a team of exceptionally smart people that is exploring novel gene therapy solutions for Duchenne, but I have also become further dedicated to the important mission. My role has afforded me the opportunity to interact with many external stakeholders, including academia, industry, regulators, patient advocacy organizations and most importantly, patients living with Duchenne and their families. The Duchenne community is a source of constant inspiration for Solid’s work, and it truly fuels the team’s drive to discover and develop a solution for Duchenne.