ClostraBio CEO Ritu Shah shares her journey into biotech to inspire others: "Don't let anything stop you."

A CEO at a Chicago biotech company is sharing words of encouragement while making lives better through her research.

For Women's History Month, meet Ritu Shah. 

Among the labs at a biotech facility in Fulton Market, you'll find ClostraBio and its chief executive officer, Ritu Shah. 

"ClostraBio is focused on gut health, simple as that. We're really looking at how do we look at the conditions that are impacted by gut health," Shah said. 

The facility produces a probiotic that supports your digestive system.

"We've been getting testimonials of people who are starting to feel better, and that's what's important to us," she said.

Shah's desire to help others began long before she joined ClostraBio in 2022.

She originally picked chemical engineering as her college major to create makeup for women with darker skin. Later, she worked at a company that researched treatment for rare diseases.

"I feel like I'm helping people. When you have a parent come up to you, which I did, during my time in this space, and say thank you and give me a hug because I've given their daughter back to them, it's just life-changing," she said.

 Now, being a female CEO in biotech is helping other women.

"People are always trying to figure out, especially women, like how do you become CEO? How do you get into biotech? Like, how do you do it? My big thing is let me talk to you about my journey, my career," she said.

A journey that includes milestone achievements, when she joined her then-company, Pyxis Oncology, in 2021 to ring the NASDAQ's closing bell.

"There's this thing in my mind sometimes, it's like, 'Can you do it? Are you able to do it?' And I was like, no, I can do it, I can do anything I put my mind towards," she said.

And so can you! That's her message for other women.

"My guidance and advice to younger women, in elementary school, high school, as you're thinking about their degrees and what they want to do, is find something that's interesting to you, and there's no reason why you can't do something," Shah said.