About TruGenetics™

The mission of TruGenetics™ is to empower every individual to incorporate genetics and health information into their daily life, and allow every individual to contribute to the advancement of genetic research. We at TruGenetics™ believe that everyone should have access to their own genetic information, and that everyone has the right to explore their own genome to understand their predispositions to the many traits and diseases that have been found to be genetically influenced. Through our services, such as TruHealth™ and TruCommunities™, every individual will be able to incorporate knowledge about their genes into their health in a personalized way, and exchange useful information that might help improve their life with other individuals who are similar, both genetically and phenotypically. We will also empower everyone to make a difference in this world, by combining their genetic information with the genetic information of many other participants for discovery of new genetic causes of challenging diseases. With the help of every individual that uses TruGenetics™, TruGenetics™ will partner with leading research institutions, philanthropic foundations, universities, and pharmaceutical companies to conduct genetic research at a scale that is otherwise impossible.

Founders

A.Edward Mohebi, MBA, PhC, Chief Executive Officer / Cofounder
Ed is a serial entrepreneur with wide breadth in the healthcare and technology sectors. He has more than 25 years of experience in executive positions, as well as serving on several boards of directors. Ed has functional depth in managing companies during various growth and revenue stages: from CEO of 5 early and mid stage companies to leading $1 Billion division of a Fortune 500 company.

Ed’s experience includes senior positions with Digital Systems, Siemens, and Microsoft Corporation; as well as executive roles with SmartScan, Cogent, BioLab Software, Integra, XMLStar, and JCA. He has also served on Boards of Directors for RehabLogic, a medical software company; XMLStar, software Development Company; SmartScan, wireless mesh networks; BioLab Software, developer of pathway software for Microarray based experiments; Speaklink, voice recognition software; and others.

Ed graduated Cum Laude from the University of Washington with an MBA in Finance and Marketing and has a BA in Statistics from Washington State University.

Jason Chien, MD, MS, Cofounder
Dr. Chien is currently an Associate Professor of Medicine in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at the University of Washington and an Assistant Member of the Clinical Research Division at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. He is board certified in Internal Medicine, Pulmonary Medicine, Critical Care Medicine, and Iinfectious Disease. He is also a clinical, molecular, and genetic epidemiologist, as well as a translational research scientist. Dr. Chien’s NIH funded career has been dedicated to the understanding of complicated traits with significant clinical impact and finding genetic risk factors for these traits. His research incorporates highly complex clinical information, such as that will be collected by TruGenetics, with genetic data, to identify new targets for development as biomarkers and treatment targets. As a clinician with an academic background, Dr. Chien believes that each individual owns their own genetic information, and should be given the ability to access that genetic information. Dr. Chien’s extensive scientific career spans from the clinic to the laboratory, giving him a unique and realistic understanding of how genetic information can impact the daily lives of each individual.

Dr. Chien received his BA from the University of Michigan, his MD from UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School, and his Masters of Science in Genetic Epidemiology from the School of Public Health at University of Washington.

Board of Advisors

Michael Boeckh, MD
Dr. Boeckh is an Associate Member Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and an Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Washington. Dr. Boeckh's research projects focus on aspects of cytomegalovirus, including epidemiology, diagnostic methods, interactions of cytomegalovirus and the immune system, and management strategies in recipients of hematopoietic stem cell transplants and solid organ transplants, as well as in HIV-infected individuals. Additional research involves the epidemiology and management strategies of infections after HCT, with special focus on respiratory viruses, HHV-6, BK virus, and adenovirus infections. He is involved in and serves as advisor for multiple clinical trials in the treatment of viral infections. Dr. Boeckh is on the editorial board of the Journal of Infectious Diseases and a section editor of the web-based journal UpToDate. He is a council member of the Immunocompromised Host Society and a fellow of the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

Dr. Boeckh received his medical degree and PhD in Medicine from the Free University of Berlin, Germany. He completed his training in Internal Medicine in Berlin. Subsequently he completed a fellowship in Infectious Diseases at the University of Washington in Seattle, WA, and stayed on as a faculty member.

Chirstopher Carlson, PhD
Dr. Carlson has worked on methods for high throughput genome sequencing and genotyping with Dr. David Cox, founding CSO at Perlegen Sciences at Stanford University. After Stanford, Dr. Carlson worked in the DNA diagnostics industry at Roche Molecular Systems in Alameda, CA, and then studied as a postdoctoral fellow with Dr. Deborah Nickerson at the University of Washington, where he developed algorithms and software for the selection of genetic markers to use in genome-wide association analyses, a burgeoning field of genetic research. He was appointed to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center faculty as a genetic epidemiologist in the Cancer Prevention Program, with joint appointments in Epidemiology and Computational Biology, where he runs an NIH funded laboratory that continues to study the genetics of a range of common diseases, including obesity and cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer's dementia, breast, prostate and colon cancers and vaccine adverse events.

Dr. Christopher Carlson graduated as a Sigma Xi honors society member from Pomona College with a BA in molecular biology. He received his PhD in Genetics from Stanford University.

Don Fowler, MBA
A well-known Silicon Valley executive, entrepreneur and investor, Mr. Fowler is currently involved with various private companies through advisory or board memberships. Most recently, he served as CEO and Chairman of SumTotal Systems, a public company, and as a member of the Board of Directors at Xpressmo, a mobile platform company. He has also served as a senior vice president at Tandem Computers, as well as executive roles with Bechtel Group and IBM.

Mr. Fowler received a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Washington.

John A Hansen, MD
Dr. John Hansen is a Member of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and Professor of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA. He is an attending physician for the hematopoietic cell transplant program of the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA), and Medical Director of the SCCA Clinical Immunogenetics (HLA) Laboratory. In 1977, Dr. Hansen joined Dr. E. Donnall Thomas and the Seattle Bone Marrow Transplant team, where he became the Director of the FHCRC HLA lab and lead the development of an unrelated donor transplant program. He played a major role in demonstrating the feasibility of transplants from HLA matched unrelated donors with the reporting of the first successful HLA matched unrelated donor transplant for acute leukemia. Dr Hansen also played a major leadership role in the establishment of a national coordinating center to organize a network of donor registries and transplant centers, now known as the National Marrow Donor Program, dedicated to improving access to HLA matched volunteer donors and improving transplant outcome. His current research is focused on 1) whole genome studies of genetic determinants affecting transplant outcome and 2) the mechanisms responsible for immune adaptation in patients with graft-versus-host disease and the mechanisms responsible for immunological tolerance following transplantation.

Dr. Hansen received a BA degree from the University of Minnesota and MD degree from Stanford University School of Medicine.

Edward McKone, MD, MS
Dr. McKone is a Consultant Respiratory Physician at the National Referral Center for Adult Cystic Fibrosis, St. Vincent’s University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland. He is a clinical faculty School of Medicine member at the University College Dublin and affiliate faculty School of Medicine at the University of Washington. He has over thirteen years of experience in the clinical care of patients with cystic fibrosis (CF), a common genetic disease. His NIH funded research interest is in the genetic epidemiology of cystic fibrosis including how variation in the CFTR gene (that causes CF) influences disease severity and prognosis as well as the role of common genetic variation as modifiers of CF disease severity.

Dr. McKone received his medical degree from Trinity College Dublin, his Doctorate in Medicine from University College Dublin and his Masters degree in Genetic Epidemiology from the University of Washington.

Maurine D. Porto, MD, MPH
Dr. Porto has an extensive background in public health and preventive medicine. She has served as Bureau Chief for Communicable Disease Control at San Antonio Metropolitan Health District; Regional Director, Public Health Region 8, Texas Department of Health; Public Health Administrator, Family Health Services, San Antonio Metropolitan Health District; Medical Director, Community First Health Plans; Medical Director, Good Samaritan Clinic; Medical Director, Kerrville State Hospital, Department of State Health Services. Dr. Porto is also the past president of the Texas Association of Public Health Physicians.

Dr. Porto received her BA in Biology from Southern Oregon State University. She received her MD from University of Oregon and MPH from the University of Washington. Dr. Porto is board certified in Preventive Medicine and Public Health.