Students learn about industry through their own PDA chapter

Biotech students - no matter where you live, you are welcome to join the San Francisco Bay PDA Student Chapter.  Now, you're probably wondering what this is.

PDA stands for Parenteral Drug Association. And, many biotech companies produce parenteral drugs.

What is a parenteral drug?
Parenteral drugs are drugs that must be administered by injecting them beneath the skin, into the muscle, or intravenously.  Many of the biologic drugs that biotech companies produce are given to patients by one of these methods.  The protein in the image, erythropoietin is a good example.  Erythropoietin, also known as EPO, is used to stimulate the formation of blood cells.  EPO is used with premature babies and people with conditions that cause anemia such as kidney disease and cancer. 

What is the student chapter of the PDA and what do they do?
The student chapter of the PDA has members from Skyline Community College, Laney Community College, the University of San Francisco, and other community colleges in the Bay area.  The PDA is a neat organization because it focuses in on the People, Science and Regulation pertaining to the Biopharma industry.   Both science oriented people and students interested in the biotech business participate.    

The PDA student chapter holds talks and has regular meetings. The newsletter lists events such as career panels, biotech talks, and includes job postings and links to the latest podcasts by Dr. Nick Kapp.

Check out the October edition of the Student PDA newsletter to see what you think.  And definitely, check out Dr. Kapp's podcast and learn about Perfect Day and Impossible Foods.  Perfect Day is the first company to supply animal-free dairy protein. Impossible Foods makes a beef substitute with plant hemoglobin. 

If you are interested in joining the student PDA chapter, contact Dr. Nick Kapp (kapp@smccd.edu) Membership is $35 and you get the Student PDA newsletter.