Page 10 - April 2026 Insider

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INSIDER April 2026

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Scholar Alumni – Where Are They Now? …

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regulatory strategy and compliance. She has played key roles in the filing and approval of two
New Drug Applications (NDA) and several Investigational New Drug (IND) Applications and
Clinical Trial Applications (CTA). (TRACON is a biopharmaceutical company formerly based in
San Diego that was dissolved in 2024.)

From 2005 to 2007, Suzy worked at Amylin Pharmaceuticals as Senior Manager of Regulatory
Chemistry, Manufacturing and Controls (CMC). (Amylin was another biopharmaceutical
company based in San Diego that was acquired by Bristol-Myers Squibb in 2012 and then merged
with their Ohio manufacturing facility.)

From 1998 to 2005, Suzy worked at Agouron/Pfizer Global R&D in La Jolla as Senior Manager of
Regulatory CMC and Assistant Scientist in Medicinal Chemistry. (Pfizer's acquisition of Agouron
in 2000 significantly strengthened its research capabilities, particularly in areas like protein-
based drug design and HIV/AIDS treatment, according to some historical accounts. The La Jolla
campus also became a focal point for Pfizer's West Coast research efforts.)

Suzy earned a BA in Environmental Sciences at UC Santa Barbara in 1993 and an MS in Organic
Chemistry at SDSU in 1998. Following a break, she pursued a Certificate in Regulatory Affairs at
UC San Diego from 2000 to 2001.

Olgun Guvench, PhD, MD (2004-2005, Scripps Research) is
Professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and
Administration at the University of New England, in Portland Maine.
He pursues research in the field of biomolecular simulation, with a
focus on proteoglycans and protein-carbohydrate interactions.
Before joining the University of New England (UNE), Dr. Guvench
was a National Institutes of Health Kirschstein Postdoctoral Fellow
at the University of Maryland, where he trained in biomolecular

simulation and structure-based discovery/design, including developing new atomic-resolution
models for simulating carbohydrates.

Dr. Guvench earned his MD at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in 2001
and his PhD at Scripps Research in 2005. He joined the faculty of UNE in 2009 and has been
teaching there ever since.

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