Richard Lawn, Ph.D.

Richard Lawn received a B.A. degree in Astronomy from Harvard College and a Ph.D. degree in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology from the University of Colorado. His post-doctoral research in the laboratory of Tom Maniatis at the CalTech featured the construction of the first human genomic DNA library, and the characterization of the globin genes, the first human genes isolated and analyzed at the genomic DNA level. Dr. Lawn then served as a Senior Scientist at Genentech, Inc. His major projects related to thrombosis, hemostasis and atherosclerosis. He led the successful isolation and characterization of the factor VIII gene and production of recombinant factor VIII protein for the treatment of hemophelia. This became a highly successful drug, replacing earlier blood-derived products that had exposed most hemopheliacs to hepatitis and HIV. Dr. Lawn then served as Professor of Medicine at Stanford Medical School, and Vice President, Discovery Research at CV Therapeutics, Inc. Among the projects he led there was the first use of gene expression microarray profiling to discover the defective gene in a human inherited disease, Tangier disease, and its use as a target to modulate the HDL cholesterol pathway as a means to reduce cardiovascular disease.