OUR MEMBER SPOTLIGHTS
Featured Mentors
Atsuko Sakurai-Sangria, Ph.D., is a Senior Scientist at VLP Therapeutics, a biotech start-up company developing vaccines against infectious diseases and cancer. She received her Ph.D. in pharmaceutical sciences from Kitasato University in Tokyo, Japan. After her postdoctoral training at the National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center in Osaka, Japan, she joined the Oral and Pharyngeal Cancer Branch at National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, NIH. She focused on the study of the signaling pathways regulating tumorigenesis, tumor-induced angiogenesis, and metastasis under the supervision of Dr. J. Silvio Gutkind. She has been working for VLP Therapeutics since 2013 with the goal of developing a new vaccine-based immunotherapy against cancer. She also manages collaborative projects involving academic institutions, contract research organizations, and the U.S. Army for a first-in-human malaria vaccine trial planned in 2018.
1. How would you define a good leader?
To me, a good leader is positive, encouraging, and humble – my supervisor at NIH was a great leader and my role model. When I joined his team, he was already an established, well-respected scientist who led a big team. However, he said he’s not my boss, he is my colleague who happens to have a little more experience. He worked the hardest, but never said “I’m busy” or “I’m tired”. His office door was literally always open for us, and he always made time for us to discuss anything. I hope I can be a leader like him one day.
2. Why did you become a scientist?
3. What advice would you give your 20 year old self?
I would tell my 20 year old self to focus on what I like, not what I don’t like.