Juan Carlos Lopez appointed Head of Academic Relations & Collaborations at Roche

Juan Carlos Lopez appointed Head of Academic Relations & Collaborations at Roche

The former Chief Editor at Nature Medicine to spearhead Roche pRED's relations with academic and non-profit research organizations

Basel, Switzerland – January 23, 2014

Roche announced today that Juan Carlos Lopez, the former Chief Editor at Nature Medicine, will join Roche Pharma Research and Early Development (pRED) as head of the new Academic Relations & Collaborations (ARC) group, effective February 17, 2014. The ARC organization, which pRED recently established, will lead Roche pRED's outreach to academic and non-profit biomedical research and healthcare organizations for purposes of enhancing and complementing internal R&D efforts. The ARC department will also include the Roche Postdoctoral Fellowship Program. Juan Carlos Lopez will be based at pRED's Translational & Clinical Research Center (TCRC) in New York City.

"As the Chief Editor, Juan Carlos Lopez led one of the world's most recognized and well-respected scientific journals, and we are delighted to welcome him to Roche," said John C. Reed, Head of Roche pRED. "His broad scientific background and vast network of contacts and relationships within industry, academia and research foundations make him the ideal choice to lead ARC."

Dr. Lopez began his career with the Nature Publishing Group in 2000, coming on board as an Associate Editor to launch Nature Reviews Neuroscience. In less than a year, he advanced to Chief Editor and led the publication to become the top monthly reviews journal in the neuroscience field, a position it retains to this day. In 2004, Juan Carlos was named Chief Editor at Nature Medicine, which is ranked by the Institute of Scientific Investigation as the world's top journal in experimental and research medicine. He led development of a strong scientific conference program involving multiple partnerships with several foundations, pharmaceutical companies and academic institutions. Dr. Lopez also collaborated with Nature Biotechnology to create Science Café, an event series which puts young, emerging scientists working on translational research together with investors and venture funds in Boston, San Francisco and London to help explore the commercial potential of their research. The program has already led to several substantial deals between scientists and investors and has attracted the interest of other regions, including Sweden, San Diego and Houston.

"I am honored to join the Roche organization and contribute to enhancing the pRED focus on building and maintaining strong and productive relationships with academia and non-profit biomedical institutions," commented Juan Carlos Lopez. "These kinds of relationships are – and will remain – key for developing truly innovative new medicines." 

Juan Carlos earned his bachelor's and master's degree in Neuroscience from Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, his Ph.D. in Physiology and Cellular Biophysics from Columbia University in New York City, and did his postdoctoral training at Instituo Cajal in Madrid. He's a prolific author, publishing numerous original research papers based on his laboratory research. Juan Carlos has also participated in several reviews and has written countless editorials and other published pieces during his tenure with Nature.

About Roche

Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Roche is a leader in research-focused healthcare with combined strengths in pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. Roche is the world's largest biotech company with truly differentiated medicines in oncology, infectious disease, inflammation, metabolism and neuroscience. Roche is also the world leader in in-vitro diagnostics, tissue-based cancer diagnostics and a pioneer in diabetes management. Roche's personalized healthcare strategy aims at providing medicines and diagnostic tools that enable tangible improvements in the health, quality of life and survival of patients. In 2012, Roche had over 82,000 employees worldwide and invested over 8 billion Swiss francs ($9 billion US) in R&D. The Group posted sales of 45.5 billion Swiss francs ($48.4 billion US). Genentech, United States, is a wholly owned member of the Roche Group. Roche is the majority stake in Chugai Pharmaceutical, Japan. For more information: www.roche.com .

For more information please contact

Roche Pharma Research and Early Development Communications, Basel, Switzerland

Ron Fuchs, Phone: +41-61-687-9030 / e-mail: [email protected]

Dr. Zuzana Dobbie ,  Phone: +41-61-688-8268 / e-mail: [email protected]