Annual program aims to advance translational medical science research and education
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — FUJIFILM Holdings America Corporation (Fujifilm), today announced that four doctoral students have been awarded the Fujifilm Fellowship at Harvard Medical School (HMS). Since its launch in 2019, the program has now provided 17 fellowships for PhD students who are enrolled at HMS and focused on translational medicine, the process of applying basic research in the laboratory for new therapeutic development.
The mission of the program is to equip promising scientists with the specialized skills needed to translate their research findings into next-generation medical solutions for patients. Specifically, the program awards two years of research funding to students from across the nine HMS-based life sciences Ph.D. programs. HMS leadership selects all program beneficiaries.
“Taking new therapies from bench to bedside requires exacting work carried out by dedicated and innovative scientific thinkers,” says Yutaka Yamaguchi, general manager, Life Sciences Business Division, FUJIFILM Corporation; chairman and chief executive officer, FUJIFILM Irvine Scientific, Inc. “Fujifilm is proud to support Harvard Medical School as it helps to shape our world’s future scientists. We extend our congratulations to the four highly esteemed doctoral fellows who recently received grants for the promise their work holds in advancing the field of translational medicine.”
The following Ph.D. candidates at HMS have been named the newest Fujifilm Fellows:
- Sebastian Degner is a first-year student in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences Ph.D. program and has a background in cancer research and a strong propensity for business and entrepreneurship. His experience includes research stays at prestigious institutions in both Germany and the U.S. including the Department of Applied Tumor Biology at Heidelberg University Hospital and Naxerova Lab at Massachusetts General Hospital. Sebastian’s major research interest is leveraging insights gained from studying somatic and tumor evolution to develop novel therapeutic approaches for human cancer.
- Michelle Ma is a candidate in the Molecules, Cells and Organisms Ph.D. program and a member of the Fischer Lab at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. She focuses on protein complexes and pathways that contribute to the control of gene expression associated with human disease and cancer. Ultimately, Michelle hopes her research will contribute to therapeutic innovation by expanding the prospects for the design of new targeted protein degraders.
- Alexandra Probst is enrolled in the Biological Sciences in Public Health Ph.D. program and a member of the Catteruccia Lab at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Alexandra is interested in identifying and characterizing mosquito stage Plasmodium targets in an effort to combat malaria, the third leading infectious disease killer with over 200 million cases each year worldwide. Growing insecticide resistance threatens the efficacy of current vector control strategies. Alexandra believes her work holds exciting promise for a novel way of fighting one of humanity’s oldest diseases.
- Siddharth Raju is a candidate in the Systems, Synthetic, and Quantitative Biology Ph.D. program. His field of study is genetics and infectious diseases. In March 2020, Sid joined the Sabeti Lab, where he seeks to understand how respiratory viruses manipulate host genomic organization. Ultimately, Sid hopes his research will help inspire novel therapeutics by guiding the development of medical countermeasures that directly interfere with early molecular pathogenesis, as well as and more accurately predict disease course in the clinic.
“Fujifilm’s commitment to these fellowships and to supporting the life sciences community at Harvard is unwavering,” commented Bruce E. Novich Sc.D., division president, FUJIFILM Holdings America Corporation. “Our goal is to inspire and assist the brightest minds to drive forward innovative strategies aimed at addressing some of the world’s major health problems.”
In addition to their Ph.D. program, Fujifilm Fellows are enrolled in the Therapeutics Graduate Program, a new curriculum that focuses on pharmacology, toxicology, and drug discovery. Here they receive rigorous multidisciplinary training in identifying and developing novel therapeutics, understanding and investigating mechanisms of drug action, analyzing the reasons for clinical failures, and developing new compounds and applying them in preclinical and clinical studies to improve the treatment of disease.
About Fujifilm Fellowship
The Fujifilm Fellowship program was designed by Fujifilm and HMS to advance translational medicine research by investing in the next-generation of scientists. The selected beneficiaries who have been admitted to Harvard Medical School’s Therapeutics Graduate Program will receive financial assistance to pursue their education and research in therapeutic innovation. HMS leadership selects all program beneficiaries. For more information, please visit https://www.fujifilmfellowship.com
About Fujifilm
FUJIFILM Holdings America Corporation is the regional headquarters for the Americas. It is comprised of more than 20 affiliate companies across North and Latin America that are engaged in the research, development, manufacture, sale and service of FUJIFILM products and services. The company’s portfolio represents a broad spectrum of industries including medical and life sciences, electronic, chemical, graphic arts, information systems, industrial products, broadcast, recording media, and photography. For more information, please visit: https://www.fujifilm.com/us/en/about/region.
FUJIFILM Holdings Corporation, Tokyo, leverages its depth of knowledge and proprietary core technologies to deliver Value from Innovation in our products and services in the business segments of healthcare, materials, business innovation, and imaging. Our relentless pursuit of innovation is focused on providing social value and enhancing the lives of people worldwide. Fujifilm is committed to responsible environmental stewardship and good corporate citizenship. For more information about Fujifilm’s Sustainable Value Plan 2030, click here. For the year ended March 31, 2022, the company had global revenues of approximately 2.5 trillion yen (21 billion $USD at an exchange rate of 122 yen/dollar). For more information, please visit: www.fujifilmholdings.com.
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CONTACT:
Christine Jackman
FUJIFILM Holdings America Corporation
914-261-4959
christine.jackman@fujifilm.com
