Donald Lo, Ph.D. directs the Therapeutic Development Branch of NCATS’ Division of Preclinical Innovation, where he is responsible for planning and directing a broad and comprehensive program in preclinical development, including lead optimization, drug metabolism, toxicology, pharmacology, formulation development, process chemistry, natural history studies, and biomarker development. These activities include the Therapeutics for Rare and Neglected Diseases (TRND) and Bridging Interventional Development Gaps (BrIDGs) programs. Lo joined NCATS in 2018 following a 25-year career in academia, biotech, and nonprofit enterprises.
Dr. Lo received a B.S. in biology from the California Institute of Technology and a Ph.D. in molecular and cellular physiology from Yale University, followed by postdoctoral studies at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research (University College, London). In 1992, he joined the faculty of the Department of Neurobiology at Duke University. In the late 1990s, Lo co-founded a biotech company, Cogent Neuroscience, serving as its chief scientific officer until 2002. He then returned to Duke to establish the Center for Drug Discovery on a collaboration model that partnered with 40 academic institutions and more than 20 biotech and major pharmaceutical firms. In 2009, Lo co-founded HD Reach, a nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing quality health care, education, and social assistance to patients and families affected by Huntington’s disease across urban and rural North Carolina. For the last decade, he has served as a lead scientific advisor for the nonprofit Accelerate Brain Cancer Cure, which takes a venture philanthropic approach toward catalyzing translational advances in brain cancer. Lo has served on many review boards in the U.S. and internationally. He also has received numerous awards, including a Sloan Research Fellowship, a Klingenstein Fellowship Award in Neuroscience and a McKnight Scholar Award.
Dr. Lo received a B.S. in biology from the California Institute of Technology and a Ph.D. in molecular and cellular physiology from Yale University, followed by postdoctoral studies at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research (University College, London). In 1992, he joined the faculty of the Department of Neurobiology at Duke University. In the late 1990s, Lo co-founded a biotech company, Cogent Neuroscience, serving as its chief scientific officer until 2002. He then returned to Duke to establish the Center for Drug Discovery on a collaboration model that partnered with 40 academic institutions and more than 20 biotech and major pharmaceutical firms. In 2009, Lo co-founded HD Reach, a nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing quality health care, education, and social assistance to patients and families affected by Huntington’s disease across urban and rural North Carolina. For the last decade, he has served as a lead scientific advisor for the nonprofit Accelerate Brain Cancer Cure, which takes a venture philanthropic approach toward catalyzing translational advances in brain cancer. Lo has served on many review boards in the U.S. and internationally. He also has received numerous awards, including a Sloan Research Fellowship, a Klingenstein Fellowship Award in Neuroscience and a McKnight Scholar Award.
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9:00 AM - 10:00 AM (PDT)
Thursday, June 16
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