Andy Kassick

Andy Kassick has a long and varied work experience. Andy began their career in 2000 as a Graduate Research Assistant at the University of Pittsburgh. In 2004, they moved to Merck as a Senior Research Chemist, where they designed and completed numerous multi-step syntheses for the treatment of urge urinary incontinence and diabetes. In 2012, they became a Principal Investigator at Purdue Pharma, where they served as the lead chemist on an exploratory research project aimed at identifying novel opioid agonists for the treatment of pain. In 2015, they moved to PTC Therapeutics, Inc. as a Medicinal Chemist, where they designed and completed the multi-step synthesis of several synthetically challenging chemical series toward the discovery of novel antibacterial agents. In 2016, they took on the role of Adjunct Lecturer of Chemistry at Penn State Greater Allegheny, introducing students to the basic principles of chemistry and assisting them in improving their problem solving skills. In 2017, they joined Allegheny Health Network as a Senior Research Chemist, where they developed a mild, solution-based protocol for the preparation of surface modified polyether ether ketone (PEEK) biomaterials and employed emulsion and suspension polymerization in the preparation of crosslinked fluorosulfonated polymer beads. Finally, in 2022, they joined BioHybrid Solutions as a Senior Scientist.

Andy Kassick obtained a B.S. in Chemistry from Penn State University from 1994 to 1999. Andy then went on to earn a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the University of Pittsburgh from 1999 to 2004.