The SRI International veteran to expand leadership for the innovations needed to cure diseases and improve people’s health
Menlo Park, CA, January 31, 2023 – SRI International, an independent nonprofit research institute behind countless cutting-edge technological advances, today announced the promotion of Kathlynn Brown to President of its Biosciences Division. Brown will start in her new role at the end of the month.
A recognized leader in life sciences with more than 50 peer-reviewed papers, reviews, and book chapters, including a recent study published in Communication Biology-Nature on the development of a peptide that fights lung cancer, Brown has a proven track record for developing groundbreaking research in organic chemistry, peptide chemistry, biochemistry, and molecular biology to address challenges in biomedical research. In her eight-year tenure at SRI International, she has helped the organization double down on its impacts in these fields.
“I am thrilled that Kathlynn will become the new president of Biosciences division,” said David Parekh, CEO of SRI. “She brings to this role deep insight and experience in the areas in which SRI has a tradition of excellence, as well as in areas that are core to our strategic growth, such as precision medicine. Out of a tremendously talented pool of potential candidates, Kathlynn’s scientific background and her work with both government-funded clients and leading pharmaceutical companies have made her the perfect choice for this important role.”
“For nearly a decade, I have had the privilege of working alongside creative and dedicated scientists at SRI International as we pave the way in bioscience research,” said Kathlynn Brown, incoming President of SRI International biosciences division. “I am honored that my work continues to be recognized by the organization and look forward to leading the division as we continue to solve critical problems in biomedicine.”
Under her leadership as SRI’s Vice President of Drug Delivery, Brown developed FOX Three™ and DiaCyt™, two of SRI’s flagship internal research and development projects that have yielded important commercial collaborations. Brown also effectively managed work at SRI’s Shenandoah Valley site, growing the team and capabilities, as well as engaging with pharmaceutical companies.
Brown joined SRI in 2014 from UT Southwestern Medical Center. She holds a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Texas at Austin and received fellowships from the Mahler Memorial Foundation and the Organic Division of the American Chemical Society. Brown also trained at the University of California at San Francisco as a Damon Runyon Walter Winchell Postdoctoral Fellow.