Emerging medical reports from the COVID‑19 pandemic include a broad spectrum of patient symptoms due to the host immune response. Host cells utilize cytokines and chemokines to coordinate nearly all aspects of an immunogenic response to pathogens: acute inflammation, innate response, and adaptive immunity. Evidence increasingly suggests that cytokine release syndrome (CRS, or cytokine storm), an exuberant, hyperinflammatory immune response, may be responsible for severe complications, including acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), multi‑organ failure, and death, as well as many of the observed, yet unanticipated symptoms.
In this webinar, we will be discussing early research and nascent hypotheses regarding the pathophysiology of SARS‑CoV‑2 induced COVID‑19 disease by evaluating cytokine and chemokine profiles, the role of chronic inflammation in comorbidities, and the arc of immune resolution of historical virulent pathogens, such as SARS and MERS.
Kenneth Oh, PhD,
Collaborations, Applications, and New Technology Senior Global Manager
Kenneth Oh earned his PhD in bioorganic chemistry at the University of California Santa Barbara, where he synthesized fluorescence‑based peptide beacons that measured nucleic acid and protein binding events. Upon graduation, he cofounded a biotech company that reengineered virus capsids that served as a drug delivery platform. At Bio‑Rad, he develops product applications, establishes collaborations with researchers, and investigates new protein quantitation research tools.
Kelly King, PhD,
Field Application Specialist II
Kelly King is currently a Field Application Specialist at Bio‑Rad Laboratories in the Mid-Atlantic region of the U.S. She has 12 years experience with chromatography as well as specializing in Bio‑Plex Immunoassays and western blotting. Kelly joined Bio‑Rad 2 years ago after completing her postdoctoral fellowship at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, DC where she studied and characterized peptide‑nanoparticle‑drug conjugates. Kelly earned her PhD from Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA where she developed novel peptide conjugates to specifically target and deliver small therapeutic molecules and peptides to cancer cells.
Brad VanderWielen, PhD,
Field Application Specialist II
Brad VanderWielen is currently a Field Application Specialist for Bio‑Rad Laboratories in the South‑Central region of the U.S. He specializes in chromatography, western blotting, and Bio‑Plex Multiplex ELISA instrumentation and associated experiments. He has been at Bio-Rad for 5 years and has been in the field of chromatography for 13 years. He came to Bio‑Rad from his postdoctoral work at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School where he was utilizing biophysics and X‑ray crystallography to study tubulin regulation. Brad earned his PhD from the University of Cincinnati where he researched Notch transcriptional regulation using biophysical applications and X‑ray crystallography.
Candice Cox,
Global Marketing Manager, Immunoassays
Candice Cox is the Global Marketing Manager for the Immunoassay Group at Bio-Rad Laboratories. She graduated with a BSc in Biology from the University of California Los Angeles with a minor in English. She has been in several roles serving the pharmaceutical and life science industries, starting her career at Berlex Biosciences then joining Bio-Rad in 2004. At Bio-Rad she has held different roles in various groups, including R&D assay development, regional marketing, commercialization and new product development marketing for different product lines within the Life Science Group.