Misako Hata is a recent hire of Edison Biotechnology Institute. Misa has been made
responsible for maintaining machines in the building, and has several other duties,
which include the development of a core facility at EBI that will be used for cellular
metabolism research among various other studies from institutes around Athens.
Misa was born in Japan and lived there until the age of 20, when she opted to come
to stateside for a study abroad program. At this time, she was an English major and
she received her associate’s degree in that field at Kobe Shoin Women’s University.
After completing her Associate’s, Misa found herself tied to Athens by personal
relationships and decided to stay and see how things would pan out. She yearned to
continue her education, and had a specific interest in art. However, her preferred
field, Engineering Design, was not being offered at the time and she didn’t believe a
simple art degree would be the most secure route to take for employment. After
some searching and sampling, Misa landed on systems design. She completed her
four years and earned her Bachelor’s, then continued her education with the goal of
obtaining her Master’s degree.
Soon after, Misa earned her Master’s in industrial engineering. She was then hired
by the College of Education to work on a grant funded project aimed at website
design for the math education for Appalachian region. After that project was
completed, Misa moved on to SunPower, a local company that was started through
the Innovation Center, whom developed cryo-coolers and sterling engines right on
E. State street. At SunPower, Misa’s job was to build a new resource management
system for the manufacturing processes. She was employed there for 2 years until
the recession hit and the company restructured. Misa became pregnant and decided
it would be best for her to take some time to focus on her developing family.
After her first child, Misa had a short run working under President Robert Glidden in
the Provost’s budget office. However, with another child on the way she again put
family first and took a short break in her professional life. Upon her return, an
opportunity presented itself with the introduction of Ohio University’s Biomedical
Engineering program. Misa already had credits that could apply to this major and
she had desired to get involved in medical laboratory work since having her first
child. At the same time, Diagnostic Hybrids Inc. offered Misa a full time job. She
worked out a deal with DHI to work part time for the rapidly developing company
while taking her classes. Misa cites that she enjoyed her time with DHI, as she was a
necessity for the company, both as a translator and a scientist. She travelled to Japan
and was responsible for testing the diagnostic assay crossing the border as part of
Japan’s strict laws on foreign medical device imports. Misa also wrote the thesis for
the assay developed at DHI, and upon completing her degree she was promoted to a
full-time employee. Not long after, DHI was acquired by Quidel Corp.. Misa was
taken away from her non-R&D work duties and began with molecular diagnoses
division concentrating on viral DNA/RNA detection.
Misa found herself frustrated with the repetitive corporate-style work and began
seeking other opportunities. This is when she was introduced to Dr. Shiyong Wu,
Director of EBI. He offered her a position maintaining machines and aiding in the
development of a core research facility. Misa jumped on the opportunity and
recently began her work at the institute. She has ambitious visions for the core
facility, which is intended for shared research uses by biomedical institutes on
campus. She has already played a vital part in the acquisition of the first piece of
equipment for the lab and says there is much more to come. She is enjoying getting
to know everyone and is excited to keep contributing to the success of Edison
Biotechnology Institute!