The Pow(Her) of Women in Medical Research

We honor Women’s History Month with a focus on the future of genomics and precision medicine

Every year during Women’s History Month, we talk about women that have made an impact on our society. Several women have contributed to the evolution of science, medicine, biotechnology and specifically, genomics.  

History of Henrietta Lacks (HeLa cells)

The first woman that comes to mind for me is Henrietta Lacks. The contribution of this Black woman’s “HeLa cells” to the field of genomics and science are considerable. Her cells were used to develop the polio vaccine and they contributed to research on cloning, gene mapping, and in vitro fertilization. The fact that she or her family were never compensated for her contribution demonstrates our systematic failures to acknowledge and compensate women of color for their contributions.  

Image: Collection of the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery and National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift from Kadir Nelson and the JKBN Group LLC. 

Nobel Prize Recipient 

Frances Arnold, the Linus Pauling Professor of Chemical Engineering at CalTech, won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2018 for pioneering the use of directed evolution to engineer enzymes. Frances is distinct as the most recent woman in science to win the prestigious award.  

 Women at IndyGeneUS AI and Strategic Partners

The women of IndyGeneUS and our strategic partners are dedicated to democratizing the genomic data and increasing inclusion of black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) in human clinical research globally.  

Dr. Elizabeth Wala is a practicing physician and thought leader in Nairobi, Kenya. She brings a passion for nutrition and has used her influence to support the development of health policies in Kenya. She serves as a Board Advisor to IndyGeneUS.

Irene Kiwia, Co-founder of Afya Rekod, is an accomplished Tanzanian businesswoman. We join with her today in celebrating the first female president in Tanzania, Samia Suluhu. As one of our strategic partners, Afya Rekod is a mobile digital health data platform in Africa with over 100,000 users and rising.  

Vanessa Gonzalez-Covarrubias, Co-founder of EncrypGen and University Lecturer in Pharmacogenomics in Mexico. Her work as a Research Associate at INMEGEN, National Institute for Medical Genomics continues to drive diversity. 

Thank you to all the women who are currently making history. As a scientist and father to four girls, I’ve been focused on the future of women in science and technology. Also, it is my believe that the genetic discoveries that underpin our advances in medical research will be fueled by women researchers. Therefore, it is important to highlight the contributions of those in the past in order to inspire the future young women interested in genomics.   

It is common knowledge that for decades, clinical trials have been plagued with a lack of cultural and gender diversity in trial participants. Last year, I partnered with Massachusetts Institute of Technology to host MIT Hacking Racism in Healthcare Challenge. To this day, clinical trials consist predominately of 95% European white male. This means we have a great deal of data on how European men experience different medications. Everyone else is, well underrepresented. During my time at the FDA, I have direct knowledge of this underrepresentation given my interdisciplinary scientist roles at the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) and Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH). Hence, the reason I formed IndyGeneUS AI to democratize and diversify the use of genomic data in clinical trials. 

At IndyGeneUS, we are poised to create a digital health data platform with both clinical and genomic data to drive precision health equity.  Join us on our mission to sequence over 100,000 human research participants from the continent of Africa and Africa diaspora in 2021. 

To learn more about our recent partnerships and the seed investment round, visit our website at www.indygeneus.ai or email us at [email protected] for investor relation queries.