I became fascinated with science years ago after I read an article describing research as being “productively stupid.” There is something particularly motivating about being on the edge of our collective knowledge- realizing that while I don’t know the answer, I do know what I need to know next. This motivation has directed my career since I first started research over eight years ago. At first, academia appeared to be the perfect place to do science. This ideal of pushing the boundaries of our knowledge is most definitely put to the test in academia, exemplified daily as I gradually became a specialized expert in my tiny corner of the scientific community. While working within academia’s confines and freedoms, I always wondered whether the grass was indeed greener in industry, and Pivot 314 presented the perfect opportunity to find out.

The Pivot 314 Program was particularly appealing as it provided a platform for me to explore the St. Louis start-up scene. Start-ups had always been presented to me as fast-paced, high-risk, high-reward enterprises that were racing to a finish line no matter the price: intimidating to a job seeker stepping a first toe out from academia’s doorstep. Pivot 314 was the perfect opportunity to determine whether this path was a viable future for me, and luckily, Omniose agreed to host me for my internship.

Omniose aims to produce glycoconjugate vaccines against bacterial pathogens that are becoming major global health threats, avoiding the use of antibiotics and combatting the rise of antibiotic resistance. Their novel platform provides an “elegantly simple” alternative to conventional conjugate vaccine manufacturing by using bioconjugation, essentially using bacteria as small factories to generate these vaccines for us rather than complex chemical processes. During my years of research, I have come to greatly appreciate the importance of applying laboratory discoveries to viable products that can help people, translating basic science into tangible solutions. Omniose’s strategy allows us to learn from nature, inspiring cutting-edge therapeutics that were not previously possible.

Notably, Omniose is housed in Biogenerator Labs, a biotech collective from the non-profit BioSTL that incubates local start-ups. This proximity made day-to-day lab work particularly
interesting, as I was constantly surrounded by a diverse array of young biotech companies that were working on novel products, as well as their motivated staff that provided invaluable advice and perspective into joining industry. Through my internship at Omniose, I was able to build confidence in my job search, along with critical skills and the ability to demonstrate industry experience to companies I will apply to in the future.

Reflecting on my time at Omniose is bittersweet. Bitter in that I now need to return to the grind of academia to complete my PhD, and sweet in figuring out where I want to go from here. Academia has plenty of pros going for it, and its inherent scientific freedom will be a challenge to find anywhere else. Moreover, my experiences during my PhD have undeniably made me a better scientist and a better person, but my time in Pivot 314 and Omniose has made me motivated and secure in having a goal for my future. I am confident that I can be “productively stupid” in industry in ways that will more directly contribute to solving some of humanity’s biggest threats, such as antibiotic resistance, compared to the more theoretical space of academia. I want to be a part of these solutions.

Finally, I must thank the fantastic team at Omniose for welcoming and mentoring me throughout these ten weeks. The quality of Omniose’s research program combined with their culture of innovation is inspiring, and I cannot recommend Omniose enough to any future fellows. A huge thank you to my PI, Mario Feldman, for being incredibly supportive of this internship and my training. Perhaps most importantly, thank you to the Pivot 314 Fellowship and all of its contributors for so generously granting me this foundation for my future.