Barbara L. Bernardo

Barbara L. Bernardo
43 Seabury Avenue
Ledyard, CT 06339
(860) 464-9687 (h)
(860) 686-2190 (w)
Barbara.bernardo@pfizer.com (w), barbvinozmis@yahoo.com (h)
CAREER SUMMARY
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Research Scientist with 15 years experience in metabolic disease (frailty, diabetes,
and obesity), oncology and safety pharmacology research in a pharmaceutical
industry setting
Provide in-vivo scientific expertise to investigate disease mechanisms, provide derisking strategies and evaluate new and established targets in diabetes, whole body
metabolism, muscle metabolism and muscle wasting
Utilize standard pre-clinical models and develop novel in vivo models to characterize
and dissect out mechanisms of disease pathogenesis
Team and project focus and the ability to work on varied projects
Thorough experience in analyzing, collating, reporting and presenting data results
PROFESSIONAL SKILL SET
In-vivo (Mice, Rats, Dogs, Non-Human Primates)
• Cardiovascular assessment using radio-telemetry
• Whole body metabolism characterization through indirect calorimetry
• Glucose Homeostasis tests: Hyperglycemic clamp, OGTT, IPGTT, IVGTT, ITT
• Whole Body imaging techniques (micro-CT, MRI, DEXA, IVIS, ultrasound)
• Functional in-vivo tests (treadmill running, running wheel, grip strength, rotorod)
• In-vivo and in-situ evoked muscle strength
• Animal model development (ex. Flow-Mediated Dilation, Hyperglycemic clamp,
Models of Brown Adipose activity, hindlimb immobilization, steroid myopathy, whole
body vibration, graft vs. host)
• Sciatic nerve denervation
• Dosing (p.o., i.p., i.m., i.t., i.v. and s.c.)
• Blood collection (cardiac puncture, jugular, tail, facial, saphenous, cephalic and
orbital bleeds)
• Necropsies, Muscle, fat pad, bone and tissue dissection
• Administration of anesthesia: (Isoflurane, Pentobarbital, Ketamine, Midazolam)
• Surgery (osmotic mini-pump implants, iBAT removal)
• Tumor cell implantation (s.c., i.v., i.c.), tumor fragment implantation (s.c.)
• Animal handling, restraint
In-vitro
• ELISA and multiplex assays
• SDS-PAGE & Western Blot
• RNA isolation
• Cell culture (human and mouse lines); Prepare cell and tissue lysates
• Extract and measure tissue levels of glycogen, triglycerides and free fatty acids
• Solid phase extractions
• Plasma/Serum Clinical Chemistry analysis
• Angiogenic assay development
Animal Model Experience
• Frailty/Muscle Wasting: hindlimb immobilization, aged mice and rats, steroid
myopathy, denervation
• Diabetes/Metabolism: ob/ob, db/db, DIO, STZ-induced, Zucker, ZDF, ex-iBAT, GEMM
including CRE-Luciferase mice, obese NHP
• Oncology: immunocompromised mice and rats, xenograft models, angiogenesis and
metastasis models
• Immunology: GvH
Barbara L. Bernardo
860-464-9687
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PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Pfizer Inc., Groton, CT
Present
Senior Scientist – Department of Safety Pharmacology – Physiology Group
• Provide safety risk assessments and de-risking strategies for multiple project teams
across therapeutic areas
• Study director role for in-vivo safety and efficacy studies; responsible for protocol
design , execution and report generation
• Established and validated a mouse cardiovascular safety assessment model using
radio-telemetry
• Development of a large animal model (non-human primate) of insulin secretion
(hyperglycemic clamp) to assess novel compounds for T2DM
• Design and execute small animal studies to investigate the role of brown fat and
temperature on metabolic outcomes and in response to novel treatments for obesity
& metabolic disease
• Assist in the development of a primate model to assess vascular reactivity (flowmediated dilation) using ultrasound techniques
• Work in a multi-disciplinary fashion to provide research support for the Cambridge
based research unit
• Responsible for collecting, analyzing and presenting data to drive decision making
Pfizer Inc., Groton, CT
2006-2012
Scientist – Department of Cardiovascular, Metabolic & Endocrine Disease
• Design and execute primary in-vivo assays and models to characterize lead
compounds for their effect on glucose homeostasis and/or whole body energy
metabolism as well as establish and implement appropriate secondary and tertiary
in-vivo models to fully characterize lead molecules
• Develop in-vivo research models and methods to promote mechanism-based drug
discovery for disease-mediated alterations in muscle metabolism, muscle growth and
wasting, brown fat activity and whole body metabolism
• Characterize metabolic and functional (strength, exercise capacity,
balance/coordination, etc) gains/losses of modulating skeletal muscle mass,
composition and oxidative capacity
• Perform ex-vivo and in-vitro experiments for the evaluation of Biomarker and/or
Protein changes in response to compound and/or functional/mechanical intervention
in-vivo
• Manage and author animal use protocols and act as primary liaison between CVMED
and Comparative Medicine for vivarium related operations and activities
Pfizer Inc. (Nucon Group), Groton, CT
2005-2006
Associate Scientist – CVMED Department, Obesity Biology
• Execute therapeutic in-vivo efficacy studies for obesity drug development
• Operating MRI, PIXImus and DEXA x-ray machines to determine body composition
• Operating and optimizing spontaneous food intake system to monitor food intake and
activity
• Maintain accurate study findings, analyze and present data
• Review and search relevant scientific literature
CGI Pharmaceuticals, Branford, CT
2005
Senior Associate Scientist - Department of Immunology and Inflammation
• Design and execute therapeutic in-vivo studies, ex-vivo and in-vitro assays
• Characterization of animal models for Lupus (GvH model) and Rheumatoid Arthritis
(CIA model)
• Trained staff on in-vivo techniques
• Assisted Oncology department with animal model development (metastasis models)
• Maintained accurate study findings, analyze, organize, and present data
Barbara L. Bernardo
860-464-9687
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Bayer Corporation, West Haven, CT
2001-2005
Senior Associate Scientist - Department of Cancer Research
• Critical role in advancing preclinical drug discovery projects by scheduling, organizing and
conducting in vivo studies (Tumor Growth Inhibition, PK/PD and Tox).
• Design in-vivo studies to support various projects
• Expertise in all aspects of cancer in vivo models and techniques
• Proficient in cell culture techniques (human and mouse lines)
• Tumor model development
• Trained new staff on in-vivo techniques
• Maintained accurate study findings, analyze, organize, and present data
• Development of a Matrigel-plug assay as an in-vivo angiogenesis assay
• Assisted in the development of a tube-formation assay as an in-vitro angiogenesis
assay
• Assisted in implementing a cell line repository to improve data quality and consistency
across Oncology department.
• Member of the Safety Committee
Bayer Corporation, West Haven, CT
1999-2001
Assistant Laboratory Animal Technician - Department of Research Technologies
• Handled all aspects of animal husbandry
• Animal handling, assessment of animal health
• Cage washing, cage changing
• Knowledge of proper housing and enrichment programs
• Compliance of federal, state, and facility guidelines
• Ensuring proper sanitation of all parts of animal facility
• Followed and developed SOP’s for all aspects of animal husbandry
• Reviewing and learning animal use protocols
• Following proper waste management procedures, including bio-hazardous waste
• Daily communication with in-vivo associates
• Performing monthly safety evaluations of the animal facilities
• Training new husbandry associates
EDUCATION
B.S., Health Science, Quinnipiac University, Hamden, CT
ACCREDITATIONS
Certified by the American Association of Laboratory Animal Science as an
Assistant Laboratory Animal Technician
AWARDS
Received an award for Animal Technician of the Year 2000 by the Southern New England
Branch of the American Association of Laboratory Animal Science.
Barbara L. Bernardo
860-464-9687
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EQUIPMENT
DSI telemetry platforms including Ponemah and OpenArt
IVIS ® Imaging System for use with real time imaging
La-Theta micro-CT
4 in 1 Echo MRI
PIXImus
DEXA
CLAMS (Columbus Instruments)
Spontaneous Food Intake System (Columbus Instruments)
Neuromuscular Function Equipment
Sector Imager 6000 (Meso-scale discovery)
Spectramax Plus, Spectramax Gemini
Fugifilm Imager & Developer
Bio-Plex (Bio-Rad)
Hitachi Roche 912 Clinical Chemistry Analyzer
Hitachi Roche Cobas c311 Clinical Chemistry Analyzer
Publications
1) Barbara Bernardo, Min Lu, Gautam Bandyopadhyay, Pingping Li, Yingjiang Zhou, Jie
Huang, Nancy Levin, Roberto A. Calle, Derek M. Erion, Timothy P. Rolph, Martin Brenner,
Saswata Talukdar “FGF21 does not require interscapular brown adipose tissue
and improves liver metabolic profile in animal models of obesity and insulin
resistance” Submitted 02 Feb 2015, Sci Rep
2) Yan Weng, Jeffrey R Chabot, Barbara Bernardo, Qingyun Yan, Yimin Zhu, Martin B
Brenner, Chandra Vage, Alison Logan, Roberto Calle, Saswata Talukdar
“Pharmacokinetics (PK), pharmacodynamics (PD) and integrated PK/PD
modeling of a novel long acting FGF21 clinical candidate PF-05231023 in dietinduced obese and leptin-deficient obese mice” PONE-D-14-47149R1 (accepted 30
Jan 2015)
3) Yuichi Akasaki, Noriyuki Ouchi, Yasuhiro Izumiya, Barbara L. Bernardo, Nathan
K.LeBrasseur, and Kenneth Walsh “Glycolytic fast-twitch muscle fiber restoration
counters adverse age-related changes in body composition and metabolism”
Aging Cell, 2013, Doi: 10.1111/acel.12153
4) Barbara L. Bernardo, Timothy S. Wachtmann, Patricia G. Cosgrove, Andrew M.
Kuhn, Alan C. Opsahl, Kyle M. Judkins, Thomas B. Freeman, John R. Hadcock, Nathan K.
LeBrasseur “PPAR δ Activation and Myostatin Inhibition Exert Distinct yet
Complimentary Effects on the Metabolic Profile of ob/ob Mice” PLoS ONE 5(6):
e11307. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0011307
5) Nathan K. LeBrasseur, Theresa M. Schelhorn, Barbara L. Bernardo, Patricia G.
Cosgrove, Paula M. Loria, Thomas A. Brown “Myostatin inhibition enhances the
effects of exercise on performance and metabolic outcomes in aged mice” J
Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci doi:10.1093/gerona/glp068
Barbara L. Bernardo
860-464-9687
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Abstracts and Posters
1. Barbara L. Bernardo, David A. Griffith, Margaret S. Landis, Debbie Wanapun, David
Tess, Tom McDonald, Amit Kalgutkar, Brent Kuzmiski, Nick Edmunds.
“Development of a hyperglycemic clamp in non-human primates to assess
GLP-1 mediated insulin secretion” American Diabetes Association, San Francisco
2014
2. Janice Chin, Barbara Bernardo, Martin Brenner, Joanne Buxton, John Cheng,
Kentaro Futatsugi, Denise Gautreau, John Hadcock, Terri Hinchey, Ann Janssen,
Dawn Kelly-Sullivan, Dave Piotrowski, Nicole Roush, Suvi Simila, Joe Warmus,
Angela Wolford. “A Small Molecule TGR5 (GPBAR1) Agonist Shows Metabolic
and Anti-inflammatory Effects in Cells Expressing Human TGR5” American
Diabetes Association, Chicago. 2013
3. Darwin V. Lee, Barbara Bernardo, Saswata Talukdar & Martin B. Brenner
“Fibroblast Growth Factor-21 (FGF-21) synergizes with insulin in human
adipose stem cell-derived (hASC) adipocytes” EASD, 2012
4. Kyle Kuszpit, Laigao Chen, Aijun Zhu, Gwen Currier, Kenneth Zasadny, Lucinda
Thiede, Barbara Bernardo, Martin Brenner “Using [18F]FDG PET as a biomarker
for brown adipose tissue (BAT) metabolism in diabetes/obesity research”
2011 World Molecular Imaging Congress, Sept. 2011
5. Salatto CT, Salter EB, Bernardo B, Smith E, Loria PM, Brown TA “DIO Mice
Treated with an anti-Myostatin mAB Exhibit Increased Insulin Sensitivity
and Decreased Tissue Triglycerides” APPL PHYSIOL NUTR METAB 2009;
34(6)(DEC):1153 (Abstr 144)
6. D. Auclair, D. Miller, C. Carter, Y. Chang, B. Polony, X. Zhang, V. Yatsula, W.
Pickett, A. Burd, H. Shi, S. Rocks, R. Gedrich, L. Abriola, D. Apanovitch, H.
Vasavada, I. Enyedy, S. Heald, J. Dumas, B. Riedl, S.M. Wilhelm, P.A. Trail “BAY
43-9006 (Sorafinib) is a potent inhibitor of FLT3 tyrosine kinase signaling in
AML Cells” AACR (2005)
7. Y. Chang, C. Cortes, B. Polony, C. Brink, J. Elting “Preclinical chemotherapy
with the VEGFR-2 and PDGFR inhibitor, BAY 57-9352, in combination with
Capecitabine and Paclitaxel” AACR (2005)
8. P. Vincent, X. Zhang, C. Chen, L. Lantz, C. Rembiesa, B. Polony, C. Carter
“Chemotherapy with the raf kinase inhibitor BAY 43-9006 in combination
with irinotecan, vinorelbine, or gemcitabine is well tolerated and efficacious
in preclinical xenograft models” ASCO (2002)