Biography

Chariz P. Johnstone, Ph.D., is a scientific program analyst in NCATS’ Office of Special Initiatives, where she provides programmatic support to emergency awards made under two RADx^SM Radical (RADx-rad) programs: (1) Screening for COVID-19 by Electronic-Nose Technology, which aims to develop a platform for the detection of volatile organic compound signatures unique to COVID-19 from skin or breath, and (2) Exosome-Based Non-traditional Technologies Towards Multi-Parametric and Integrated Approaches for SARS-CoV-2, aimed at newly developed exosome-based technologies pivoted for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 virus RNA and/or protein and the detection of antibodies against the virus.

Prior to joining NCATS in April 2021, Johnstone served as a scientific consultant in career development at the Office of Research on Women’s Health, supporting a mentored career development program and the NIH Working Group on Women in Biomedical Careers. She previously has held teaching positions in both K–12 and higher education levels. Her most recent appointment was as a visiting lecturer in the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department at the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC), where she taught introductory general chemistry courses for students preparing for the health sciences and instructed students in advanced instrumental and analytical chemistry labs.

Johnstone earned her doctorate in chemistry from the University of Houston and her Bachelor of Science in chemistry from the University of San Carlos in the Philippines. Her postdoctoral work at the UMBC Center for Advanced Sensor Technology fulfilled aims of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s Biologically-derived Medicines on Demand program in the use of rapid, point-of-care manufacturing of therapeutics for front-line military medics responsive to emergency settings.

Research Topics

Johnstone’s research interests are in advancing the development of robust, reliable diagnostics and low-cost drug delivery systems amenable to point of care. Understanding the regulatory perspective for state-of-the-art analytical methods applied to these systems is crucial to accelerating development, enabling innovation and bringing these technologies to the market.

Selected Publications

1. Point-of-Care Production of Therapeutic Proteins of Good-Manufacturing-Practice Quality
2. Sum Frequency Generation Spectroscopy of Tetraalkylphosphonium Ionic Liquids at the Air-Liquid Interface
3. Optimizing Cell-Free Protein Expression in CHO: Assessing Small Molecule Mass Transfer Effects in Various Reactor Configurations
4. Sum Frequency Generation Spectroscopy of Imidazolium-Based Ionic Liquids with Cyano-Functionalized Anions at the Solid Salt-Liquid Interface