Gemma Satterthwaite
Description
At 26, Gemma Satterthwaite became one of the youngest team leaders at pharmaceuticals company AstraZeneca. A former Young Biochemist of the Year, she works in Bioinformatics, combining computing and biology to try to speed up the discovery of new medicines.
Gemma leads a small team of senior scientists researching respiratory and inflammatory diseases, to develop treatments for conditions such as asthma and osteoarthritis. Before that, she was a Global Project Leader, leading a multi-disciplinary team across three continents.
Her earlier work to find the diagnostic markers, which predict heart disease (atherosclerosis) - and thus, offer the potential for new anti-inflammatory drugs - earned her the Promega Young Scientist Award.
Inspired by her own schooldays, Gemma places a high value on good science teachers. She is committed to outreach work in local schools and is an ambassador for SETNET, the Science, Engineering, Technology and Maths Network, offering her time, enthusiasm and expertise to help schools engage young people.
Benefit
Gemma says: "When you meet with scientists from other disciplines, you begin to recognise the links between all our work - and the similarities in many of the problems we face. It gives you the confidence and connections to investigate potential collaborations.
"Making science popular is a universal challenge, and one that means a lot to me. So it was useful to explore how best to get a clear message across.
"The course broadened my own understanding of different scientific opportunities and it was a real eye-opener to approach things from a new perspective."
Impact
Having learned new creative thinking techniques, Gemma is disseminating her knowledge among colleagues at AstraZeneca. She is running a series of sessions to share new approaches, as well as applying them within her own role.
Gemma says: "Fostering innovation is very important within the Pharmaceuticals industry and Crucible equipped me with a structured approach to think creatively and be innovative."
She has also acted as a judge for the AstraZeneca-sponsored British Association CREST accreditation scheme, aimed at developing scientific curiosity, problem-solving and communication skills in students aged 11-19.
Gemma adds: "It's important that we break down the barriers and show how enjoyable science can be, so young people understand the career options that exist. It's not a one-way street - working with a bunch of enthusiastic young people is really uplifting and motivational!"
Written: April 2007
Individual:
Dr Gemma Satterthwaite
Programme:
Crucible
Discipline:
Biochemistry
Location:
Loughborough, Leicestershire
Year attended:
2006