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Response Genetics,Inc. (RGI) was founded in 1999 to leverage breakthrough, patented technology from USC for the “extraction of genetic information from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded clinical trial samples.” Until that time, RNA was only available from fresh frozen specimens; it was not possible to extract meaningful genetic information from diagnostic specimens fixed and stored in paraffin before the discovery of RGI's patented method.
Our success in developing this technology allows us to deliver tangible benefits to pharmaceutical companies and to create new platforms to support the industry with more efficient, cost-effective analysis of clinical trial samples, leading to the development of more “personalized” patient therapies.
Kathy Danenberg has been the Chief Executive Officer for Response Genetics, Inc. since 2002. With her vision and leadership the Company has become a leading provider of molecular analysis services for some of the world's leading pharmaceutical companies.
Ms. Danenberg's began her career in molecular research and developed broad expertise in a variety of areas and applications. While at USC, Ms. Danenberg invented a breakthrough patented method to extract RNA from formalin-fixed paraffin embedded tissue specimens which became the basis for the establishment of Response Genetics, Inc. , Ms. Danenberg's research on the kinetic mechanism of thymidylate synthase provided the rationale for use of the 5-FU-leucovorin combination in colorectal cancer. She designed and carried out experiments demonstrating that 5-FU could alter RNA splicing and developed methods for using the polymerase chain reaction to quantitatively measure gene expression levels in tumor tissues.
Prior to her work at USC, Ms. Danenberg worked with the renowned enzyme kineticist Dr. W.W. Cleland at the University of Wisconsin to elucidate the mechanism of action of the enzyme hexokinase. Ms Danenberg has a world-wide reputation in the field of pharmaco genomics and is a frequent lecturer on a variety of subjects in this field. Ms. Danenberg has published over 70 peer-reviewed articles and is an invited lecturer for various scientific meetings both nationally and internationally in the field of pharmacogenomics. She received a B.S. in Biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin.
Mr. O’Toole joined Response Genetics in May of 2010. He most recently served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Abraxis Bioscience, LLC. Prior to his experience with Abraxis, Mr. O’Toole spent twenty four years in public accounting. Starting in 1984 he was with Arthur Andersen for eight years and then spent sixteen years with Deloitte & Touche serving as Partner on many large multinational corporations. The last ten years in public accounting, his industry focus was in Life Science and Biotech. During his career in public accounting, Mr. O’Toole spent two years in Tokyo, Japan and two years in Paris, France.
Mr. O’Toole received a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Arizona.
Denise McNairn joined Response Genetics as our Vice President and General Counsel in February 2007. Prior to joining the business, from 2001 to 2007, Ms. McNairn was an attorney at Kenyon & Kenyon LLP. Her legal experience covers all areas of intellectual property, including patent and trademark litigation, patent prosecution, and licensing. Ms. McNairn's patent litigation experience is focused in the life sciences, including pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and devices.
Prior to Kenyon & Kenyon, Ms. McNairn worked as a Technology Transfer Specialist at the National Cancer Institute Technology Transfer Branch, where she began her career in drafting and negotiating transactional agreements. Prior to beginning her legal career, Ms. McNairn worked a number of years in the biotechnology field and was an infectious disease researcher.
Ms. McNairn received her B.S. from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, an M.S. from Johns Hopkins University and her J.D. from the University of Maryland School of Law.
Ms. Cooc has been the Director of Regulatory Affairs for Response Genetics since 2005. Ms. Cooc joined Response Genetics in 2001 and held positions in both research and operations, including as Head of Operations, North America. Prior to this she gained extensive experience in clinical diagnostics and clinical development requirements while holding various laboratory positions with publicly held companies, including Quest Diagnostics Inc. Prior to Quest Diagnostics, Ms. Cooc held research and clinical diagnostics positions at SmithKline Beechem Clinical Laboratory and Loyola Marymount University.
Ms. Cooc received a Masters in Regulatory Science from the University of Southern California and a B.S. in Biochemistry from Loyola Marymount University.