Matthew McGinniss
College of Medicine Class of 1988
One of the People Behind “Personalized Medicine”
When Wired magazine readers read about one writer’s adventure in DNA screening (“A preview of a trip to the DNA doctor, circa 2008”) in last November’s issue, University of Vermont College of Medicine alumnus Matthew McGinniss, Ph.D.’88 was one of the scientists helping in the diagnosis.
McGinniss credits his experience at the College of Medicine with leading him into this cutting-edge field. “I worked in [Professor of Pediatrics] Richard Albertini’s lab,” says McGinniss. “My work with him really fired up my interest in studying genetics.” McGinniss focused his dissertation on somatic cell mutation in vivo in newborns. Anyone giving birth at Medical Center Hospital of Vermont in the late 1980s who donated umbilical cords for research probably had a hand in helping McGinniss’ study.
At Sequenom, a San Diego-based company that has emerged as a leader in DNA analysis, McGinniss works on the company’s MassARRAY system, which is said to be the most powerful technology available for analyzing variations in DNA to identify ones that affect significant portions of the general population. “My work involves working with a machine that does DNA phenotyping. It looks in detail at a ‘snip’ of DNA. We can look at that snip and do genetic diagnostics — to observe genetic markers, see what they’re there for, and ultimately link up with new drug discovery to help with the development of personalized medicine,” says McGinniss.
McGinniss’s links with the College of Medicine are not quite detectable on the level of DNA, but they’re almost that ingrained. His father, Gerald F. McGinniss, M.D., was a member of the College’s class of 1950, and practiced medicine in the Burlington area for years. After graduating from Burlington High School, McGinniss received his undergraduate degree in zoology from the University of New Hampshire and his masters from Virginia Polytechnic Institute. He spent five years doing environmental consulting before starting his doctoral work at the College in 1984.
McGinniss credits his experience at the College of Medicine with leading him into this cutting-edge field. “I worked in [Professor of Pediatrics] Richard Albertini’s lab,” says McGinniss. “My work with him really fired up my interest in studying genetics.” McGinniss focused his dissertation on somatic cell mutation in vivo in newborns. Anyone giving birth at Medical Center Hospital of Vermont in the late 1980s who donated umbilical cords for research probably had a hand in helping McGinniss’ study.
At Sequenom, a San Diego-based company that has emerged as a leader in DNA analysis, McGinniss works on the company’s MassARRAY system, which is said to be the most powerful technology available for analyzing variations in DNA to identify ones that affect significant portions of the general population. “My work involves working with a machine that does DNA phenotyping. It looks in detail at a ‘snip’ of DNA. We can look at that snip and do genetic diagnostics — to observe genetic markers, see what they’re there for, and ultimately link up with new drug discovery to help with the development of personalized medicine,” says McGinniss.
McGinniss’s links with the College of Medicine are not quite detectable on the level of DNA, but they’re almost that ingrained. His father, Gerald F. McGinniss, M.D., was a member of the College’s class of 1950, and practiced medicine in the Burlington area for years. After graduating from Burlington High School, McGinniss received his undergraduate degree in zoology from the University of New Hampshire and his masters from Virginia Polytechnic Institute. He spent five years doing environmental consulting before starting his doctoral work at the College in 1984.
(for UVM staff)