I'm Justin Yamashita, and I'm currently inside the system you have questions about.

I hold a Bachelor's in Biological Science and a Master's in Biochemistry. My thesis research focused on epigenetics and the host immune response, specifically how bacterial byproducts change the way the immune system behaves at a molecular level. I've spent nearly a decade working through every level of clinical research, not as an observer, but as someone doing the work.

After completing a Master's grounded in microbiology, molecular biology, immunology, and epigenetics, I moved into clinical research at trial sites as a Clinical Research Coordinator, where I saw how trials operate from the patient side. Today I work at PPD, part of Thermo Fisher Scientific, as a Senior Project Manager running global Phase I, II, and III clinical trials.

Most people in health media have seen one level of this. I've worked at three of the main parts of the clinical research pipeline.

But the credentials aren’t why Root to Rx exists.

I built this because I believe most people are capable of understanding complex science when it's communicated honestly. The problem isn't the complexity. It's the communication. Too much health content either talks down to people or buries them in jargon, and both approaches leave the same result: readers who can't evaluate what they're being told.

Science isn't just a body of facts. It's a way of asking questions. Root to Rx is my attempt to hand that skill to anyone who wants it, using real research, on real topics, explained without shortcuts.

Two tracks. One topic. Read what fits.

Every issue covers the same subject two ways. Plain Talk is for anyone: clear, no jargon, no background required. The Informed goes deeper into the mechanics, the data, and the regulatory context for readers who want the full picture.

Both are free.

Find us on Instagram and in the Root to Rx Facebook community, where the questions keep going between issues.

The views expressed on Root to Rx are my own and do not represent the views or positions of PPD, Thermo Fisher Scientific, or any affiliated organization.