Asuragen is a fully integrated diagnostics company focused on molecular oncology and early detection of cancer, with an emphasis on microRNA. Asuragens current diagnostics product portfolio consists of Signature Genetic and Oncology Testing products, as well as industry leading controls and standards engineered using its patented Armored RNA technology. In addition to its diagnostics products, Asuragen offers GLP testing services and an established cGMP manufacturing facility that allow it to span the spectrum of discovery, testing, production and commercialization.
Dr. Matt Winkler is CEO of Asuragen, Inc. He received a B.S. degree in Genetics and a Ph.D. in Zoology from the University of California at Berkeley.
He was a Jane Coffin Childs Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Hawaii and the University of California at Davis. He joined the Zoology Department of the University of Texas as an Assistant Professor in 1983.
He is the author of over 30 scientific publications and has 9 issued patents. In 1988, as an Associate Professor, he started Ambion, Inc., a molecular biology tool company. Ambion became the preeminent molecular biology tools company focusing on RNA with about 400 employees located in Austin, Cambridge, England and Tokyo, Japan.
In 2002, he was the Austin winner of the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year and a National Finalist. In March of 2006, he sold the research products division of Ambion to Applied Biosystems and with about 100 employees started Asuragen, Inc.
CEO of molecular diagnostics company Asuragen and founder of Ambion, a molecular biology tool company; founded Mirna Therapeutics as a carve-out of Asuragen, to develop cancer therapeutics based on miRNA; former professor at UT Austin.
Dr. David Brown is Director of Drug Discovery and in vivo Research at Mirna Therapeutics.
Dr. Brown was the Director of Discovery at Asuragen, Inc. where he oversaw efforts to identify diagnostic and therapeutic applications for miRNAs from 2006 to 2008.
From 1996 to 2006, Dr. Brown served in the R&D Department at Ambion, Inc. and developed research products for the life sciences market.
Dr. Brown received his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from the University of Colorado and currently serves as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.
David M. Rubin, Ph.D., is an Executive Director in Merck’s Global Health Innovation group. David’s primary focus area is Personalized Medicine and he holds board seats at Aviir Inc, Daktari Diagnostics, Virtualscopics, and Prophecy Inc., and is a board observer for Asuragen Inc.
David joined Merck in 2007 as Director of Franchise and Portfolio Management. He joined Merck from Cognia Corporation where he was CEO and President, and helped to build it into an R&D software and content products company.
David holds a Ph.D. from Temple University in Molecular Biology and a BA from SUNY Binghamton in Biology.
He was a National Institutes of Health and American Cancer Society Post-Doctoral fellow at Harvard Medical School where he worked on the Ubiquitin Proteasome Pathway.
He also received training in post-graduate business at Harvard University.