St. John’s-based biotechnology company Sequence Bio has hired Dr. Michael S. Phillips as its new chief scientific officer.
In the role, Phillips will lead all of the company’s development projects and genomic and precision medicine research as it readies for rapid expansion and growth in operations.
A large part of his work will involve leading the NL Genome Project, which involves tracking the genetic makeup of people across Newfoundland and Labrador in an effort to develop new drug treatments for illnesses and diseases prevalent in the province’s population.
“I am thrilled to be returning home to Canada to join Sequence Bio, an exciting new biotech company planning to use cutting-edge genomic technology and science to identify drug targets and disease biomarkers that have the potential to directly benefit the people of Newfoundland and Labrador in a real and meaningful way,” Phillips stated in a release announcing his appointment.
Phillips’ brings more than 25 years experience in large-scale genomic projects, drug target discovery and leading research teams at places such as Merck & Co., Orchid BioSciences, Génome Québec, Université de Montréal, Montreal Heart Institute and Centre Hospitalier de L’Université de Montréal (CHUM) Research Centre. He comes to Sequence Bio having most recently served as the vice president of genomics at Genomics Medicine Ireland where he was responsible for developing clinical genomic labs and building teams.
"We are incredibly proud to have Dr. Phillips and his international expertise with population genetics research projects join the team,” Sequence CEO Chris Gardner stated. “He recognizes Sequence Bio’s unique opportunity to innovate drug discovery and embraces our participant-centric approach to benefit the people of Newfoundland & Labrador.”
