Sharookh B Kapadia

I joined the Department of Infectious Diseases at Genentech as a Scientist in 2007. During my Ph.D. and postdoctoral fellowships, I focused on better understanding host-viral interactions using g-herpesviruses and Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) model systems. Since joining Genentech in 2007, I have spearheaded and been a part of terrific collaborative teams focused on a number of pathogens, including HCV and Gram-negative bacteria. More recently, we are focused on better understanding the complex host-microbe interactions and heterogeneity seen in Acute Respiratory Distress syndrome (ARDS), sepsis and viral/bacterial pneumoniae with the goal of identifying novel targets for therapeutic intervention.

What initially attracted me to Genentech and still keeps me engaged to this day is the unrelenting collaborative and unselfish nature of the scientists whom I have the privilege of working with every day. Genentech offers a solid research infrastructure and commitment to rigorous science that continues to push me to uncover transformative biology that could help the development of better and safer therapies for patients with unmet infectious diseases.

Postdoctoral Mentor

I have been very fortunate to have been trained by outstanding scientists and mentors during my undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral research, and these experiences have made me really appreciate the value of a good mentor and how they can help guide junior scientists and researchers as they embark on their independent research careers. Being a postdoc mentor is a very humbling and rewarding experience for me and I hope to transfer some of the knowledge and experiences I learned as a trainee to the next generation of scientists and drug discoverers.