People

Academe

SCRIPPS RESEARCH INSTITUTE
La Jolla, Calif.

Four scientists have been hired at the new Scripps Florida biomedical research operation in Palm Beach County.

Patrick R. Griffin has started as professor and head of drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics in the drug discovery division. Most recently chief scientific officer and vice president of research at ExSAR, Griffin has also worked as senior director in the basic chemistry department at Merck Research Laboratories and as senior director of molecular profiling proteomics. He earned a Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Virginia.

John Hogenesch will start in October as associate professor and associate director of genome technology in the divisions of biomedical science and technology development. He currently serves as head of genomics at the Genomics Institute and as assistant professor of neuropharmacology at Scripps Research Institute. He received a Ph.D. in neurobiology from Northwestern University.

Chris Liang is the new associate director of medicinal chemistry in the division of drug discovery. Having worked at Accelrys and Sugen, Liang most recently was director of chemistry at Pfizer, managing new lead synthesis/medicinal chemistry, combinatorial chemistry, and computational chemistry. He has a Ph.D. in chemistry from Princeton University.

Teresa Reyes will start in October as assistant professor in the division of biomedical science. Most recently a senior research associate at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, Reyes was awarded a five-year Mentored Research Scientist Development Award from the National Institute of Diabetes & Digestive & Kidney Diseases. She received a Ph.D. in neurobiology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Business

AVECIA BIOTECHNOLOGY
Manchester, England

Mark Douglas has been appointed to the new role of manager of intellectual property. He has worked as a staff scientist at the European Molecular Biology Laboratories, Heidelberg, Germany, and as a research chemist at Ciba Giegy. In 1996, he joined Zeneca Specialties, and after Avecia was created in 1999, he became business development manager for Avecia's DNA medicines business in Europe. Douglas graduated with a Ph.D. in nucleic acid chemistry from Liverpool University, in England.

Charles J. Shields has accepted the newly created position of director of global business development for DNA medicines. From 1988 to 1998, he worked in ICI's chemicals and polymers division in the U.K. Shields joined Zeneca's ink-jet business in 1998, and during the transition to Avecia, he held the role of new products development manager. He received a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Strathclyde, in Scotland.

HONEYWELL
Morristown, N.J.

There are several additions to the Research & Life Science Solutions business.

Akhil Kapoor brings more than 14 years' experience in strategy consulting, business development, and product commercialization to the role of commercial excellence leader. Most recently, he worked with clients in the chemical industry for McKinsey & Co. Kapoor holds a bachelor's and a doctorate in chemical engineering from Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, and State University of New York, Buffalo, respectively, as well as an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago.

Joseph Piccari, rejoining Honeywell after working for Fisher Scientific's chemical division, has started as North American account manager with responsibility for pharmaceutical intermediates and active pharmaceutical ingredients. Piccari has also worked for AlliedSignal's fluorines business. He received a bachelor's in chemistry from State University of New York, Binghamton, and a master's in technology management/strategic planning from Rutgers University, Newark, N.J.

Xiao-Dong Shi has been named sales executive for Asia-Pacific. Shi has served as a product manager for DCH Healthcare Products and as a dealer supporter for GE Medical Systems. He holds a bachelor's in chemistry from Tsinghua University, in Beijing.

OTHER COMPANIES

Luis Fernandez, a vice president at Rohm and Haas, Philadelphia, has been named director of the company's global plastics additives business. He also will continue his vice president role. Fernandez joined Rohm and Haas Mexico in 1983. He earned a B.S. in chemical engineering from the Universidad Iberoamericana and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton executive management program.

Ronald Fillmore has been named executive director of Midland, Mich.-based Xiameter, the global, Web-enabled brand of Dow Corning. Fillmore previously worked in the specialty chemicals business of Dow Corning, where he was distributor director of performance chemicals, as well as global coatings manager.

Michael Klacik has been appointed senior director of nutrition and bioscience at National Starch & Chemical, Bridgewater, N.J. Most recently vice president of business development at OmegaTech, he has also worked for Pfizer/Cultor Food Science. Klacik holds a B.S. in food science from Rutgers University, New Brunswick, and an M.S. in food science from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

Wolfgang Muhs has been appointed vice president of custom manufacturing and intermediates at Rhodia Pharma Solutions, Cranbury, N.J. He has worked at Raylo Chemicals, where he was head of the research organization and then president of the company, as well as at Laporte Catalysts & Initiators and Degussa. Muhs received a doctorate in organic chemistry from the University of Konstanz, in Germany.

Suresh Subramanian has been promoted from vice president of international business development to the role of president at Utec Corp., Riverton, Kan. He joined Utec in 2003 from Orica USA, where he was director of global product development. A native of Mumbai, India, Subramanian earned his graduate degree in chemical engineering from the University of Cincinnati

This section is compiled by Deanna Miller.
Announcements of promotions and new hires may be sent to d_miller@acs.org.