Veronica Anania
Senior Principal Scientist, OMNI Biomarker Development
"I am extremely grateful to work with such dedicated and passionate scientists to answer important questions that may improve the lives of patients."
I joined Genentech in 2011 as a postdoctoral researcher of Jennie Lill who leads the Proteomics and Biological Resources group. As a member of the proteomics group I used mass spectrometry to investigate post-translational modifications and to identify biomarkers of cell death. During this time I was fortunate to work on many independent and collaborative projects that highlighted the numerous applications of this rapidly evolving technology. In 2014 I was hired as a Scientist in Biomarker Development to lead a group focused on applying mass spectrometry-based approaches to interrogate biomarker hypotheses in our clinical programs. I am privileged to have access to state-of-the-art equipment, incredibly knowledgeable colleagues, and clinical samples that enable us to answer challenging biomarker questions that provide insight into underlying disease mechanisms.
Featured Publication
Uncovering a Dual Regulatory Role for Caspases During Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress-induced Cell Death.
Mol Cell Proteomics. 2016 Jul;15(7):2293-307.
Anania VG, Yu K, Gnad F, Pferdehirt RR, Li H, Ma TP, Jeon D, Fortelny N, Forrest W, Ashkenazi A, Overall CM, Lill JR.
I have always had a strong desire to focus my work on developing better therapies for patients and I transitioned from Research to Developmental Sciences to focus more on translational projects. I am excited to take advantage of recent advances in mass spectrometry to identify robust biomarkers for autoimmune and allergic diseases.
Currently my group is focused on implementing targeted and discovery mass spectrometric approaches to develop multiplexed panels of peptide or lipid biomarkers to measure changes in disease. Using these panels, we hope to identify noninvasive biomarkers to help inform treatment decisions and to monitor disease activity and progression. We hope these analytical approaches will allow us to make clear decisions regarding therapeutics currently in the clinic and hopefully lead to the development of better, more efficacious medicine for our patients.
- University of California, Berkeley, Ph.D in Molecular and Cell Biology – 2011
- University of California, Santa Cruz, B.S. in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology – 2005
- The Kenneth and Ann Thimann Scholarship – 2005
- UCSC Graduated with Highest Honors – 2005
- Phi Beta Kappa – 2001-2005