Dr. Ryan Watts, third from left, with team members Steve Krognes, Carole Ho, Alexander Schuth.
Summiting the tallest mountain in North America is a significant undertaking and a life-changing accomplishment. Denali is not only the tallest mountain on
Alumni Profile
Dr. Ryan Watts Q u e s t to C on q u e r N e u r od e g e ne r at i v e I l l ne s se s
the continent but the tallest
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passion that would determine his career path. Along with his undergraduate research experience, Ryan also served as a teaching assistant for Dr. Baldomero “Toto” Olivera
mountain in the world measured from
world due to improved nutrition and effective
and was a Pediatric Technician in Surgery at
above ground base to peak. As such, the
treatments for some diseases, Alzheimer’s
Primary Children’s Medical Center.
challenge and potential of mountaineering
disease and other age-related neurodegenera-
are reflected in both the name and purpose of
tive diseases are reaching epidemic propor-
interactions with Dr. Olivera because he recog-
Denali Therapeutics, a biotechnology company
tions. Expressed solely in financial terms, the
nized how Olivera’s biochemical insights could
focused on finding treatments and cures for
cost of treating people with Alzheimer’s and
be translated into treatments for pain. Ryan
degenerative illnesses, such as Alzheimer’s and
other dementias is estimated to exceed $260
excelled in the lab and the classroom, and
Parkinson’s disease.
billion by 2020 in the U.S. alone.
upon graduation was accepted into Stanford
A product and proponent of public edu-
University’s Biological Sciences doctoral pro-
surprising when you meet the CEO and
cation, Watts graduated from Cottonwood
gram. Watts recalls that there were just a few
Co-Founder of Denali Therapeutics, Dr. Ryan
High School and came to the University of Utah,
fellow students from his graduate school class
Watts. A College of Science alumnus in
reflecting his desire to attend a top-tier
who had completed their undergraduate
Biology, Watts gained an early appreciation for
research institution. As an undergraduate,
degrees at public institutions, but that his
mountains growing up in Holladay, Utah, in the
Watts was still figuring out where he wanted to
experiences at the U had prepared him well.
shadow of Mount Olympus.
focus his talents. He started out as a Chemistry
Now, Watts and his colleagues are
student, but saw the fields of Cell Biology and
himself in research and received his Ph.D. in
passionate about discovering drug therapies
Human Genetics as the future. However, it
2004, focusing on the molecules that regulate
to help over 22 million people across the world
wasn’t until he got the opportunity to conduct
nervous system development. Afterwards, he
who are fighting crippling neurodegenerative
undergraduate research in the Department
accepted a position at Genentech, a company
illnesses. As life expectancies rise across the
of Biology that Ryan discovered the
known for breaking new ground cloning human
This association with mountains is less
Watts was particularly impacted by his
At Stanford, Ryan continued to distinguish
