Janine Tom is a Senior Principal Scientist at Amgen in the Drug Substance Technologies Synthetics group. She obtained her PhD in Chemistry from UC Irvine, where she developed synthetic chemical tools to probe the innate immune response for vaccine development. At Amgen, she has worked on the process development of synthetic and hybrid modality programs with the goal of advancing these therapies in the clinic and to patients. She is also an active member in the Empowering Women in Organic Chemistry group, promoting diversity and inclusion.

What are you most proud of in your work or life?

I am really proud of the community and strong relationships I have made through my life and academic/industry career. The people are what I remember most. Additionally, the reason I am in science (specifically pharmaceutical industry) is to make a positive impact. It is very rewarding to know when the medicine development I am working on reaches actual patients to help them.

What are your passions and hobbies?

Traveling, running, pottery.

Do you have a personal motto or other words to live by?

If you get a chance, take it.

Favorite snack food?

Hot Cheetos