2018 Wittliff Lecture Series At San Marcos Academy To Feature Molecular Biologist

The Lecture Series, established to acknowledge the more than 200 American and international students and research fellows from almost 40 countries who trained in Wittliff’s laboratory…

Kelli Bramlett, noted molecular biologist and Director of Research & Development at Thermo Fisher Scientific in Austin, will be the featured speaker for the 2018 Wittliff Lecture Series at San Marcos Academy.

The Witliff Lecture, “My Bloom on the Foundations of STEM Learning,” will be presented at 10:15 a.m. Sept. 19 in the Katherine Schultz Lecture Hall on the Academy campus. The event is open to the public.

Bramlett leads a team of scientists in the Clinical Sequencing Division of Life Sciences Solutions at Thermo Fisher, which is one of America’s most inventive biotech companies.

She guides Research and Development efforts focused on creating innovative sequencing and data deciphering solutions for DNA analysis of cell free nucleic acid and liquid biopsy with next generation sequencing.

Recognized for her expertise, Bramlett and her team are prominent participants in The Blood Profiling Atlas in Cancer (BloodPAC) Consortium which was launched in 2016 to accelerate development and validation of liquid biopsy assays to improve the outcomes of patients with cancer.

Her team has also developed many sequencing products and applications for RNA analysis using next generation sequencing.

Prior to joining Thermo Fisher Scientific, Bramlett was a drug development scientist at Eli Lilly and Company, where she led a team of investigators specializing in gene regulation and nuclear receptor biology to identify novel therapeutic targets.

Bramlett built her background and experience in gene regulation through prior academic positions at Baylor College of Medicine and M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

She holds a degree in Chemistry from Rice University, Houston, and obtained a graduate degree in Pharmacology from Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis, IN.

The Wittliff Lecture Series recognizes the contributions of Dr. James L. (Jim) Wittliff, distinguished cancer researcher, scholar and inventor, who is a 1956 graduate of San Marcos Academy.

The Lecture Series, established to acknowledge the more than 200 American and international students and research fellows from almost 40 countries who trained in Wittliff’s laboratory, attracts noteworthy scientists and educators to SMA to advance the Academy’s STEM program.

The intent is to expose students to the career journeys and accomplishments of exceptional individuals who have had an impact on areas of critical importance for mankind’s advancement.

San Marcos Academy is an accredited private Christian school for day students in grades K-12 and boarding students in grades 6-12. For more information, call 512-753-8000.

Caption:

Kelli Bramlett of Thermo Fisher Scientific in Austin