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People in the News: New Appointments at SomaLogic, 23andMe, Pacific Biosciences, More

SomaLogic: Steve Mermelstein

SomaLogic has hired Steve Mermelstein as senior VP of corporate strategy, development, and mergers and acquisitions. He was previously VP of strategy and corporate development at Agilent Technologies. Before that, Mermelstein was managing director at Covington Associates, as well as managing director at Huron Consulting Group.


23andMe: Joseph Arron

Joseph Arron has been appointed as CSO of 23andMe. Previously, he was VP and senior fellow of immunology research at Genentech, which he joined in 2006. In his new role, he will determine and prioritize 23andMe's therapeutic programs and indications, including drug discovery and target validation efforts. He will also lead the firm's scientific teams across multiple medical areas, including immuno-oncology, immunology, respiratory disease, and cardiovascular disease. Arron holds an M.D./Ph.D. from Cornell University Medical College and Rockefeller University and an undergraduate degree from Princeton University.


Pacific Biosciences: Jason Kang

Pacific Biosciences has appointed Jason Kang as VP and general manager for the Asia-Pacific region.

Kang brings more than 25 years of experience in the genomics industry. He led Illumina's commercial operations in South Korea for six years and launched his own company, Helixrus, which distributed large-scale population genomics and clinical sequencing software for single-cell RNA and rare disease sequencing. He has also held positions at Life Technologies, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Macrogen, and Spectral Genomics.

Kang holds a doctorate in biochemistry and molecular biology from Thomas Jefferson University.


For additional recent items on executive appointments, promotions, and awards in omics and molecular diagnostics, please see the People in the News page on our website.

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