Microarray Service Team

Josh Bernd received his Bachelor of Science from University of California, San Diego. After working with radioactive P32 end labeling, Sanger sequencing, and cDNA microarrays, Josh joined Illumina in 2002. At Illumina, Josh participated in the launch of the first GoldenGate assay and development of the Infinium assay. Throughout the development, Josh specialized in improvements to Illumina’s manufacturing processes.

With the acquisition of Solexa, Josh pioneered the on-boarding of human whole-genome sequencing in Illumina FastTrack Services. Josh set up production on the GA system and ultimately transitioned to the HiSeq system. Josh led automation of one of the largest genomic centers in the world, including enablement of a Laboratiory Information Management (LIMS) system to ensure positive sample tracking for every project. Under Josh’s guidance, FastTrack Sequencing Services sequenced over 10,000 samples, including the launch of the first human genome in 14 days — providing researchers with the ability to make biological discoveries in record time.

Mark received his doctorate from Oregon Health Sciences University, specializing in medical microbiology and immunology. During his doctoral studies, he focused on understanding the structural elements and their self-assembly properties of retroviruses including HIV-1. He gained valuable molecular biology experience during his post-doctoral studies at the Salk Institute, where he contributed to the development of both in vitro and in vivo assay to identify inhibitors of HIV-1 integrase enzyme. His work ultimately lead to several patents and licenses within the medical community.

In 2000, Mark joined the Illumina FastTrack Services project management team where he supported over 200 microarray projects. He has supported the completion of over 1,000,000 genotyped samples. Mark has established numerous key collaborations within Illumina and with Illumina’s customers to help launch multiple array products and department operations. He was recently awarded a grant through NHLBI to study Hispanic genomics and manages the project through Illumina FastTrack Services using a custom array. With his high level of expertise, he is well-suited to help customers in their study design including SNP loci selection and product selection to best meet a customer’s needs. He is the first point of contact for FastTrack Services microarray customers, ensuring a smooth development for every project.

Karine received a master’s in oceanography from Pierre and Marie Curie University in Paris and a master’s in evolutionary biology and conservation genetics from San Diego State University, focusing on morphological and genetic distinctiveness of endangered population of dolphins and porpoises. She continues to be involved in cetacean conservation projects and has established collaborations with researchers from all over the world. Her contributions in molecular ecology and conservation genetics have resulted in the conservation of wild populations of dolphins and porpoises.

In 2005, Karine joined the Illumina FastTrack Services project management team as a scientist where she supported large scale genotyping projects. She was part of the development of the first Infinium whole-genome genotyping products, and the pioneer team who developed the methodology to analyze data for millions of loci generated with Illumina Infinium beadchips. She performed the post-synthesis analysis for multiple microarray products from the HumanHap300 to the HumanOmni2.5. In 2011, Karine extended her expertise to next generation sequencing to support large scale sequencing projects. She currently oversees the FastTrack project management group. Through her leadership, the team has developed and streamlined scalable processes, further enhancing project management and customer support. Karine manages between 60 to 100 projects at a time for customers ranging from academia to pharmaceutical companies, and is a key contributor to the development of software applications and lab process implementations.

Joey Flores received a Bachelors of Science in Biology from the University of California, San Diego. At the Salk Institute, Joey contributed to the identification of two distinct T-DNA homozygous insertion lines for every gene in Arabidopsis, where only 30,000 mutant lines have been isolated to date. Joey’s contributions have been applied to reverse genetic screens to systematically test for functional roles of genes in Arabidopsis.

In 2011, Joey joined Illumina FastTrack Services as a member of the library preparation team. Joey made significant contributions to the optimization and development of high-throughput processes for whole genome and exome enrichment library preparation. Joey has expertise using Illumina’s TruSeq technology, generating high quality libraries for sequencing on Illumina’s HiSeq system. Joey handles the customer inference and management of over 40 projects, ensuring the proper on-boarding and delivery of customer data.