Real People

Slavik Dushenkov
Slavik Dushenkov
Education: Moscow Pedagogical State University
HomeTown: Russia
Occupation: Vice President of Research and Business Development

Slavik Dushenkov

Have you dissected a frog in biology class yet? For Slavik Dushenkov, now 47, one whiff of that formaldehyde and he was hooked for a lifetime.

The vice president of research and business development for WellGen in New Brunswick now spends his days managing research projects and defining the future direction of research and development (otherwise known as R&D) for the biotechnology company. Biotechs generally develop drugs for pharmaceutical firms. WellGen develops products for the human food, therapeutics, and dietary supplements market. Dushenkov admits that his interest in biotechnology came from a lifelong passion for biology and especially in "complex biological systems and methods of management of these systems."

When he first started in the field, the term biotechnology was nonexistent. However, Dushenkov says that the fast pace and necessary problem solving interested him. "I have to continuously learn to be at the edge of biotechnological applications," he explains. "I especially enjoy combining my knowledge of biology, chemistry, physics, medicine, as well as business development, to define and solve problems."

The Russian native earned his B.S. degree in 1977 in biology, chemistry and education from the Moscow Pedagogical State University, and went on to earn his Ph.D. in biology in 1984. After working as a high school teacher, university professor and researcher in Russia, he came to the U.S. in 1992, as a visiting scientist for the Biotech Center at Rutgers University.

At Rutgers, Dushenkov conducted research in bioremediation and plant physiology, some of which led him to start his own company, Phytotech, in 1995. The cool technology business used plants to help clean toxins from the environment.

Today, he notes, "With the largest collection of pharmaceutical companies in the world here in the state, New Jersey is the perfect place for a tech career."