Roslin Tech announce Dr Deepika Rajesh as Chief Science Officer
Roslin Technologies, a life science company in Edinburgh focused on cultivated meat, has announced the appointment of Dr Deepika Rajesh to the role of Chief Scientific Officer. Deepika brings a wealth of stem cell experience to the company. Her appointment reflects Roslin Technologies’ commitment to advancing its animal stem cell platform for the emerging cultivated meat sector and ensures that robust science is at the heart of the company.
Deepika has worked with induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) for over 25 years to develop impactful solutions for human health. While at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, she collaborated with James Thomson (University of Madison), who is best known for deriving the first human embryonic stem cells in 1998 and for deriving iPSCs in 2007. Subsequently, she joined Cellular Dynamics International (CDI) as one of the first employees and later became Senior Director, and Scientific Head of R&D Discovery Research. CDI was acquired by Fujifilm and is now one of the leading iPSC companies globally. Most recently she was the Vice President of Stem Cell Biology and Developmental Immunology at Notch Therapeutics and led the R&D program on generating iPSC derived T cells for cell therapy applications.
During her career, Deepika has been involved in the reprogramming and generation of hundreds of stem cell lines and led extensive programs to generate multiple cell types from iPSC for drug discovery and therapeutic applications. She has managed multidisciplinary teams and strategic collaborations. She holds a PhD in Applied Biology from the University of Mumbai, and she has been awarded more than 25 granted and pending applications patents worldwide in the field of stem cell biology.
Ernst van Orsouw, CEO of Roslin Technologies, said “I am incredibly excited that Deepika is joining us. We strive to be the leader in animal stem cell innovation for cultivated meat. To reach commercial viability, significant scientific progress is needed. Deepika brings us experience and leadership capabilities that will accelerate our scientific programs and help us make our customers successful.”
Commenting on her appointment, Deepika said “I am delighted to be joining the team at Roslin Tech. The biological and engineering challenges for cultivated meat are significant. I have experienced how biological hurdles can be overcome and believe the impact of this technology on our food system can be transformative.”
Deepika will relocate with her husband in October 2023 and will be based at Roslin Technologies’ facilities in Edinburgh.