There’s a tremendous amount of high-quality science that goes into developing new Luminex platforms and assays. To help us navigate best practices, we rely on Scientific Affairs Manager Shubhagata Das, who joined Luminex in 2014. The Calcutta native has earned two master’s degrees in biotechnology, including one with a certification in business.
Q: What are your responsibilities at Luminex?
A: Together with my manager, Sherry Dunbar, I am responsible for providing scientific and technical expertise to the company for activities related to product development and on-market product support. We manage our advisory boards, assist with external collaborative studies, and determine the publication strategy for the company. The role also involves helping to write literature about our products, comparisons with other products, white papers, and other publications.
Q: What did you do before this?
A: This was my first job out of school. I got my undergraduate and master’s degrees in India, and then came to the U.S. and got my second master’s degree with a business minor at Texas A&M University.
Q: What drew you to Luminex?
A: I was looking for an internship here in Texas, and Luminex is one of the few Austin-based companies in the diagnostics industry. Sherry was looking for an intern, and it just clicked. Everyone else in my master’s program wanted a job in a lab, but I was looking for something connected to business. This is a really good place to work, and I like the people. After my internship, I converted to a full-time employee.
Q: If you could solve any clinical or genetic challenge, what would it be?
A: Interstitial lung disease. It’s very personal to me because I lost my father to this incurable disease, which causes irreversible lung damage.
Q: If you weren’t at Luminex, where would you be?
A: I like doing creative things like painting, so maybe I’d be doing something in the design field.
Q: What is something about you that no one at Luminex knows?
A: I’m a serious game addict! I can spend hours playing board games or video games, and I have a huge collection of them. I’m super competitive. I play to win!
Q: What is your favorite thing to do in Austin on the weekend?
A: I love to drive across Austin around the Greenbelt area, and to go hiking or walking there.
