Mice Mice Baby
A Note from the President
January 2017 marked our 9 year anniversary and the close of another great year here at TransPharm. With 17 new clients in 2016, the TransPharm family now spans over 6 continents. As a result of our continued growth, we were able to reach a major milestone in November: a total of $10M in revenue since I founded the company in 2008. Increased demand also allowed us to welcome some new faces to our team – Brianne Fiero (Associate Scientist) in April, and Brittany Dixon (Scientific Writer) and Emily Gilles (Laboratory Technician) in October.
2016 was also a year of physical growth. A 2,100 sq. ft. addition to our facility, including an expanded animal vivarium and a procedure room, was completed in May. This new space contains both a negative pressure room and a positive pressure room, with corresponding bioBUBBLE® enclosures in each, meaning separate, dedicated areas for C. difficile and germ-free work, respectively. The renovations have already proven advantageous to our clients who currently work in the C. difficile therapy development field. Please contact us for more information.
Finally, I’d like to extend an open invitation to visit us here at TransPharm. We wouldn’t be celebrating these successes without our clients, and we’d love the opportunity to meet you personally and provide a tour of our facilities. Thank you for your business and we look forward to working with you in the new year.
Daniel Ross
President & CEO
Positive pressure bioBUBBLE® enclosures in a separate, pressurized room allow for germ-free studies in vivo.
Negative pressure bioBUBBLE® enclosures in a separate, pressurized room allow for C. difficile studies in vivo.
In the Lab
This past summer, six local high school and college students interested in a career in life science participated in TransPharm’s internship program. Each student spent two weeks working on their own model validation project focused on one of the ESKAPE pathogens. These bacteria, listed below, cause the majority of US hospital infections and are increasingly resistant to current antimicrobials.
Intern Joe C. checks his plates for P. aeruginosa.
Enterococcus faecium
Staphylococcus aureus
Klebsiella pnuemonia
Acinetobacter baumannii
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Enterobacter species
Thanks to the hard work of these motivated students and historical data, TransPharm now has a validated model for all ESKAPE pathogens, with some pathogens having several models available. Contact us today for quotes or more information.
Due to the popularity and success of last year’s program, I am happy to announce that we will be accepting new interns for a Summer 2017 rotation. This year’s projects will likely follow-up on the work of previous students, moving into soft tissue models and/or pulmonary models and generating PD50 values for various comparator drugs.
Santiago R. Lopez, Ph.D.
Chief Scientific Officer
Ernst and Young
Entrepreneur Of The Year ® Finalist
TransPharm staff and guests pose for a photo at the 2016 Entrepreneur Of The Year® gala in Detroit.
Ernst and Young’s Entrepreneur Of The Year ® program celebrates those who are building and leading successful, growing, and dynamic businesses. The award recognizes entrepreneurs who demonstrate excellence and extraordinary success in such areas as innovation, financial performance, and personal commitment to their businesses and communities.
Our President and CEO, Daniel Ross, was named as a Finalist for the 2016 Michigan and Northwest Ohio Award. TransPharm staff attended a gala and awards ceremony at the Detroit Institute of Arts on June 23rd.
TransPharm Welcomes New Team Members
Three new faces joined the TransPharm team in 2016. Full bios for all team members can be found on our website.
Brianne Fiero
Brianne received her Bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences in 2015 from Spring Arbor University. As an Associate Scientist and our Vivarium Manager, Brianne monitors study progress and ensures the vivarium meets AAALAC standards.
Brittany Dixon
Brittany earned a Master’s degree in Molecular and Cellular Pathology from the University of Michigan in 2015. As our scientific writer, Brittany graphs and analyzes experimental data, compiles study reports, and writes our quarterly newsletter.
Emily Gilles
Emily will graduate with a Bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry from Saginaw Valley State University in 2018. She joined our team as a laboratory technician after an internship last summer. Emily assists with in vitro microbiology and helps maintain our facilities.