Frank Fan

Head of Biology, R&D
Promega Corporation

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Dr. Frank Fan is the Head of Biology at Promega Corporation. He is responsible for R&D activities in the division of Assay Design, Integrated Biology and Protein & Nucleic Acid Analysis. His team is dedicated to developing novel technologies, assays and services for basic research and drug discovery. He also oversees the Promega Branch in Shanghai focusing on Clinical Diagnostic in China.
Frank was elected and served on the Board of Directors for the Society of Laboratory Automation and Screening (SLAS) from 2012-2015. SLAS is the largest global drug discovery and automation professional organizations. Frank chaired and organized numerous global conferences and symposiums.
Frank has published more than 30 scientific papers. He also has 12 issued or pending patents. He served as editor for several professional journals, including ASSAY and Drug Development Technologies, Journal of Biomolecular Screening, Current Chemical Genomics, American Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Journal of Bacteriology and Microbial Biotechnology and Applied Microbiology & Biotechnology.
Prior to joining Promega in 2002, Frank was a Senior Investigator in anti-infectives drug discovery at GlaxoSmithKline.
Frank pursued his postdoctoral training on molecular genetics in the Department of Molecular Biology and Biophysics at Yale University. He received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Iowa, and his Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from NanKai University in China.

 

Speech title & Synopsis

Illuminating Biologics Drug Discovery with Innovative Assays 

Drug discovery in the modern age requires analytic tools that are simple, sensitive, quantitative and amenable for automation.  Assays are best performed in live cells to allow real time data analysis.  Furthermore, artificial intelligence significantly accelerated and optimized many phases of the drug discovery process and assay development.  In this talk, we will highlight the design principles for a variety of technologies, especially bioluminescent assays to meet these evolving needs.  Individually or in combination, they enable characterization, stability and potency measurement and companion diagnostics for biologics drug discovery.