September Event
“Women in Science and Biopharmaceutical Careers”
Keynote Speaker:
“Adventures in Drug Hunting”
Wendy Young, Ph.D.
Independent Board Member & Advisor; former SVP at Genentech
This talk spans three decades of small molecule drug discovery and development insights. The adventures include academia, biotech, large pharma, non-profit and venture capital leadership. Scientific vignettes of discovering and developing inhibitors of a variety of biological targets to treat oncology, inflammatory, and cardiovascular diseases will be shared. It is a personal journey that parallels impactful accomplishments, observations and advice for today’s students, scientists, and leaders at all stages of their career.
Dr. Wendy B. Young is a distinguished biotech executive with over 30 years of experience in discovering and developing innovative medicines for patients. She currently serves as a Board Member and Scientific Advisor for multiple biotech companies and is a Senior Advisor at Google Ventures. Previously, Dr. Young was Senior Vice President of Small Molecule Drug Discovery at Genentech, where she built and led a world-class research and discovery organization. Under her leadership, more than 25 clinical candidates advanced into development. She also spearheaded the Genentech/Roche BTK discovery program and co-invented fenebrutinib, which has been moved into clinical trials in RA, lupus, urticaria, CLL and is a promising therapy in Phase 3 trials for multiple sclerosis. Before joining Genentech, Dr. Young held senior scientific leadership positions at Celera Genomics and Scios (a Johnson & Johnson company).
A longtime leader within the American Chemical Society (ACS), she was elected ACS National Chair of the MEDI division in 2017 and currently serves as an editor for The Journal of Medicinal Chemistry Drug Annotation Series. Her contributions to the field have been widely recognized—she was inducted into the MEDI Hall of Fame in 2024, awarded the prestigious National ACS Earle B. Barnes Award in 2020, honored as one of the “Top 20 Women in Biopharma” by Endpoints News in 2019 and named an ACS Fellow in 2018 for her lifelong service to chemistry, society, and medicine.
Dr. Young is a prolific scientist, with more than 75 scientific publications and patents to her name. She earned her Ph.D. in chemistry from Princeton University under the mentorship of Dr. E. C. Taylor and completed her postdoctoral fellowship in the laboratories of Dr. Samuel Danishefsky at Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.
Event Description:
- The event will begin at 5:00 PM with a 45-minute networking reception and student poster session, offering a great opportunity to meet peers, explore student research, and engage with professionals from a variety of backgrounds.
- Following the reception, Wendy Young, a biotechnology, pharma, and life science executive with more than 30 years of experience in the discovery and development of new medicines and research platforms, will deliver a ~50-minute keynote talk, sharing insights from her unique career journey.
- Next, we will host a 45-minute panel discussion on Women in Science and Biopharmaceutical Careers. The panel will feature senior-level leaders from various companies, including Wendy Young, who will share their insights on navigating professional growth, achieving work-life balance, and managing the challenges of balancing demanding careers with personal responsibilities, including parenthood, and so on.
- The evening will conclude with ~30 minutes of additional networking, providing a relaxed space to continue conversations and build meaningful connections.
Panelists:
Suki Toguchi, Chief of Staff to EVP, PDM at Gilead
Gina Wang, Sr Director, Medicinal Chemistry at Genentech
Hui Gai, Founder & Principal Scientist at Rattan Life Science Inc.
Michelle Arkin, Prof. & Chair, Dept. of Pharm. Chemistry, UCSF, Executive Director, Small Molecule Discovery Center
Student Posters:
Ruiqi Huang (University of California, Davis)
A two-component two-step transformable nanoplatform against cancer based on biorthogonal click chemistry
Ankita Poojari (University of the Pacific)
Exploring the molecular mechanisms that contribute to lipedema fat resistance
Jessica Li (University of the Pacific)
Solid micellar nanoparticle systems for enhanced solubilization and dilution resistance of lipophilic drugs
Rabeya Bosri (University of the Pacific)
Development of Pt(II)-HDACi complexes to enhance potency and selectivity for advanced cancer therapy
Date: Wednesday September 24, 2025; 5:00 - 8:00pm PT
Genentech, Building 35, Room 1A, 350 DNA Way
South San Francisco, CA
$10 - regular fee
$5 – student, unemployed or retired
