For the last 12 years, my career has centered on supporting biomedical research designed to move science forward. From foundational discovery work at research institutions to therapeutic testing in large pharmaceutical settings, I have had the opportunity to contribute to studies aimed at answering some of the most complex biological questions in medicine.
Most of that journey took place in advanced in vivo and preclinical research. It was a world defined by precision, complexity, and collaboration. Every experiment required specialized tools, carefully optimized assays, and extensive training to ensure the data generated could deliver meaningful insights to the principal investigators and study directors leading those programs.
What kept me motivated throughout those years was knowing that each experiment contributed to a larger goal: improving our understanding of disease and helping advance therapies that could eventually make a difference in patients’ lives.
At the same time, working so closely within preclinical pipelines gave me a firsthand view of one of the biggest challenges in biomedical research: the disconnect between traditional in vitro models and true in vivo biology.
I encountered that challenge repeatedly throughout my career. Researchers working with conventional in vitro systems would spend weeks or even months developing assays and generating promising datasets using 2D cell culture. Their work was rigorous and thoughtfully designed. But when those findings moved into more biologically complex preclinical studies, the results did not always translate as expected.
Sometimes therapies that performed well in vitro failed to produce the same outcomes in vivo. Cell responses changed. Efficacy dropped. Unexpected biological variables emerged. In many cases, teams were forced back to the drawing board to troubleshoot models that were not capturing the complexity of living systems. These setbacks were not usually a reflection of poor science. More often, they reflected the limitations of the models themselves.
Traditional 2D culture systems have supported biomedical research for decades, but flat monolayer cultures cannot fully recreate the architecture, extracellular environments, and cellular interactions found within living tissue. That biological gap between in vitro and in vivo systems remains one of the biggest bottlenecks in translational research.
Over time, seeing these challenges firsthand shaped how I viewed the future of biomedical research. I became increasingly interested in technologies capable of creating more biologically relevant models earlier in the research pipeline. That perspective naturally led me toward the growing field of New Approach Methodologies, or NAMs, and advanced 3D cell culture systems.
Today, at Inventia Life Science, I support researchers using the RASTRUM and RASTRUM Allegro platforms to develop advanced 3D cell culture workflows that better replicate key aspects of in vivo biology in vitro.
What excites me most about these technologies is their potential to help researchers bridge the gap between traditional cell culture and the complexity of living systems. By creating more biologically relevant models earlier in discovery workflows, scientists can make better-informed decisions sooner, improve reproducibility, and reduce late-stage failures driven by poor biological translation. I also appreciate how these technologies support the broader movement toward NAMs in biomedical research.
My years supporting in vivo research gave me a deep appreciation for the importance of biological relevance. At the same time, collaborating with conventional in vitro teams helped me understand the challenges researchers face when trying to model complex biology using limited systems. Now, I have the opportunity to support workflows that bring those two worlds closer together.
After 12 years in biomedical research, what continues to motivate me is the same thing that inspired me at the beginning of my career: helping scientists answer difficult biological questions. Supporting advanced 3D cell culture workflows with RASTRUM and RASTRUM Allegro allows me to continue contributing to that mission in a way that feels both exciting and meaningful.