BioInnovations - The Impact of Bioinformatics on Biomedical Research and Drug Development

Wednesday, February 26, 2025
4:30 – 6:30 p.m. CST

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Rosalind Franklin University Presenter and Panelist

• Justin P. Whalley, PhD, Assistant Professor, Bioinformatics, Chicago Medical School

Industry Panelists

• Elizabeth T. Bartom, PhD, Associate Professor, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Preventative Medicine, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University
• Philip Hajduk, PhD, Vice President, R&D Information Research, AbbVie 
• Vinayak Kapatral, PhD, President and CEO, Igenbio, Inc.

Moderator

• Michael S. Rosen, MBA, Managing Director, Innovation and Research Park and Helix 51 Incubator

Justin P. Whalley, PhD

Justin P. Whalley, PhD, is a bioinformatician with a background in mathematics (M.Sci., University of Bristol) and bioinformatics (PhD, University of Évry). After completing his education, he worked as a postdoc at the National Center for Genomic Analysis (CNAG) in Spain, where he led the Quality Control working group for the Pan-Cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes project, collaborating with leading research institutes such as the Broad Institute, the German Cancer Research Center, and the Wellcome Sanger Institute. Dr. Whalley later moved to the University of Oxford as a senior bioinformatician, where he contributed significantly to the COVID-19 Multi-omics Blood Atlas (COMBAT) consortium. He joined the faculty at the Chicago Medical School at Rosalind Franklin University, in 2023.

Elizabeth T. Bartom, PhD

Elizabeth T. Bartom, PhD, is associate professor of biochemistry and molecular genetics at Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University. She earned her PhD from Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in 2004 and completed two postdoctoral fellowships in computational biology/genomics, first at Harvard University (2006) and then at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard (2010). She has received several prestigious honors, including the R50 Research Specialist Award from the National Cancer Institute in 2017 and 2023, as well as multiple teaching awards from the Feinberg School of Medicine, including the Outstanding Teacher Award in 2020 and 2021, and the Dean’s Teaching Award from the Driskill Graduate Program in 2019.

Philip Hajduk, PhD

Philip Hajduk, PhD, is vice president of R&D information research at AbbVie, where he leads a team responsible for delivering IT platform solutions across all R&D areas, enhancing decision-making capabilities for drug development. His role focuses on enabling faster, more informed decisions related to targets, drugs, and patients. Dr. Hajduk joined AbbVie (previously Abbott) in 1993, making significant contributions to its science and technology platforms. He was instrumental in the early development of SAR by NMR and the integration of technologies such as cheminformatics, high-throughput screening and data analytics to accelerate drug discovery. In 2013, he began leading the Platform Informatics and Knowledge Management group, creating tools that empower AbbVie scientists to make informed decisions and improve patient outcomes.

Vinayak Kapatral, PhD

Vinayak Kapatral, PhD, is president and CEO of Igenbio, Inc, which develops genomics and bioinformatics analysis products and services. Dr. Kapatral oversees all aspects of the company, including operations, development and marketing. His comprehensive expertise and leadership are instrumental in driving the organization's success and innovation in the fields of genomics, pharmacogenomics, diagnostics and personal medicine. With more than 24 years in the industry, Dr. Kapatral has authored more than 50 publications that have garnered thousands of citations, underscoring his significant contributions to the scientific community.