Golden Helix Awards
The Georgia Life Sciences Golden Helix Awards celebrate the incredible leaders and companies in the life sciences industry for their contributions in Georgia.
2025 Categories & 2024 Awardees
Legislator of the Year Award
Honors select legislators in recognition of their leadership in advancing federal and state policies to promote life sciences research, investment and innovation.
2024 Awardee:
The Honorable Mark Newton M.D., Georgia House of Representatives
Phoenix Award
This award celebrates an industry/academic collaboration, or other allied partnership, that demonstrate strength, tenacity, and leadership. Like the mythical phoenix, together they exemplify how strategic partnerships can accelerate discovery, fuel commercialization, and create meaningful impact for patients and communities.
This award is sponsored by the Metro Atlanta Chamber.
2024 Awardee:
Wellstar MCG Health
Deal of the Year Award
Presented to a company or institution who has made the most significant transaction of the year (between January 1, 2024-March 31, 2025), a deal that exemplifies strategic vision, market influence, and long-term value creation. Whether it’s a transformative partnership, acquisition, licensing agreement, IPO, or major funding round, this deal represents a defining moment for the companies involved and a milestone for the state’s biotech ecosystem.
2024 Awardees:
Acquisitions
- Veranex completes acquisition of T3 Labs
- Werfen completes acquisition of Immucor, Inc.
Economic Development
- Meissner
Private Financing
- Dalan Animal Health
- Inhibikase Therapeutics
- Micron Biomedical
Public Financing
- Emory, Georgia Tech & Children’s Healthcare land major NIH grant for diagnostics
Community Award
Presented to a life sciences organization or individual that has demonstrated continuous commitment to making a positive, lasting impact on their local community. This award recognizes organizations/ individuals that go beyond their day-to-day operations through career development initiatives, outreach programs, patient advocacy, corporate philanthropy, or other significant community contribution.
2024 Awardees:
- Emily Blum, Global Center for Medical Innovation
- Ashley Cornelison, Portal Innovations
- Betty Pace, Georgia Cancer Center, Augusta University
- Connor Seabrook, Georgia Research Alliance
- The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) New Atlanta Regional Office
Innovation Award
Presented to an institution, team, or individual whose innovation goes beyond the traditional paradigms and has the potential to significantly impact human health, agriculture, or environmental sustainability. Eligible innovations may include—but are not limited to—advancements in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, medical devices, digital health, or life science-related AI and data platforms.
2024 Awardees:
- Tom Barrows, ProgenaCare Global - ProgenaMatrix®
- Jack Huang, University of Georgia - DE-FLUORO
Emerging Leader of the Year Award
Presented to an individual in the first decade of their career whose achievements are significantly contributing to or transforming the life sciences industry.
2024 Awardee:
Eddie Lai, Metro Atlanta Chamber
Teacher of the Year Award
Presented to a Georgia biotechnology high school teacher who exhibits innovative teaching, mentorship, and unwavering dedication to inspire the next generation of thinkers, problem-solvers, and future leaders in STEM/ biotechnology.
Submission criteria:
- Teaching philosophy and how they incorporate innovation in the classroom.
- Examples of mentorship and support provided to students beyond the curriculum.
- How they foster curiosity, resilience, and leadership in STEM fields.
- Measurable impacts (student success stories, competition results, college/career paths, etc.).
2024 Awardee:
Emily Gunderson, Empower College and Career Center, Jackson County
2024 Lifetime Achievement Award
2024 Awardee: H. Lee Heron, DVM
Lee Herron, who will long be remembered as a pillar and irreplaceable leader in the industry, retired from the Georgia Research Alliance (GRA) in the spring of 2024 after a 16-year career with the Alliance, most recently, Lee led GRA’s agricultural technology programs including the Greater Yield initiative. He directed its award-winning venture development program for 15 years, which helped to launch 200+ university-based companies that attracted more than $2 billion in equity investment. A seasoned executive, Lee harnessed his 20 years of entrepreneurial experience to help startups develop sound business strategies. Lee served in many community leadership capacities, including board positions for Georgia Bio and Southeast Life Sciences, the Global Center for Medical Innovation’s Industry Advisory Board, the Biolocity Oversight Committee, and the NSF Center for Cell Manufacturing Technology’s Commercialization Advisory Board.
“Lee was a true visionary whose passion and integrity touched everyone he met," says Georgia Life Sciences President and CEO, Maria Thacker-Goethe. “His unwavering commitment to innovation and his profound impact on the life sciences industry will be felt for generations to come. We are honored to present him with this award posthumously.”
“The Georgia Research Alliance would not be what it is today without Lee Herron,” says GRA President and CEO Tim Denning, PhD. “Lee helped shape our program that moves university inventions to the marketplace — a program that he led and grew for 16 years. Countless technologies are at work in the world today, benefiting companies and consumers alike, because of Lee’s wisdom, guidance, and desire to make a difference.”
Prior to joining GRA, Lee managed the biosciences division of Georgia Tech’s Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC) and founded four biosciences companies: SeaLite Sciences Inc., Biopool International Inc., CytRx Corporation, and Theragenics Corporation. Herron received a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of Georgia and completed an internship at Cornell University. He also studied experimental pathology at Emory University.
Lee passed away on July 12, 2024, after a long battle with cancer. He was a devout family man, husband to Rita Herron for 50 years, father to three children, and grandfather to eight children. He leaves behind a profound legacy and will be remembered by his friends and colleagues as a dear friend.
