Bio:

Julien Roy “J.R.” Ishibashi is a biotechnology professional with 6.5+ years of combined academic and industry experience. A California native, J.R. moved to Seattle to study at the University of Washington (UW). While at UW, J.R. volunteered in the lab of Dr. Hannele Ruohola-Baker, where they screened pro-apoptotic small molecules in fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) to identify candidate chemotherapy drugs and interrogated metabolic and epigenetic mechanisms of stem cell survival & quiescence.

After graduating with a B.S. in Biochemistry, J.R. stayed on in the Ruohola-Baker Lab at UW as a technician, and then, lab manager, while publishing three first-author papers. After several years in academia, J.R. worked in industry at NanoString Technologies on Research & Development in the Technology Access Program, where they generated publication-quality spatial omics data for customers and collaborators using released platforms (nCounter and GeoMx) and later helped test and develop an instrument for commercial launch (CosMx).

At the Allen Institute, J.R. now works on Spatial Transcriptomics in High-Resolution Translational Immunology as a Research Associate III. J.R. aims to deepen our understanding of the immune system with single-cell resolution and spatial context, to eventually inform therapies and increase healthspan. These experiments seek to characterize the transcriptional signatures of heterogeneous cell types, and range in scope from cancer and autoimmunity, to aging and infectious disease. Furthermore, they’re eager to leverage data analysis tools and lab automation solutions to improve reproducibility and facilitate discovery. J.R. is excited to join a diverse team of intelligent, motivated people who are passionate about collaborative science on the cutting edge of discovery.

Recently elected and serving as SharePoint lead for the LGBTQ+ affinity group.