Innovations in gene therapy: building the complete solution for viral vector production
The goal of gene therapy is to create a treatment with the potential to save or transform lives by modifying a defective gene with a more functional one. A common approach to achieve this is by using a viral vector and advancements in viral vector design have significantly reduced immunogenicity. Adeno-associated virus (AAV) is rapidly becoming the go-to biological delivery method for the latest gene therapy breakthroughs; more than 1,300 unique gene therapy products are currently under development and nearly half are reliant on AAV. Thus, the ability to scale production of these impactful therapies is critical to bringing down costs and accelerating the process from research to commercialization.
What will you learn?
- The broad range of products and technologies that Thermo Fisher provides for customers in the gene therapy field
- About the AAV-MAX expression system for producing high titer AAV, as well as the associated upstream technologies for scale up, downstream technologies for virus purification and analytical tools for product characterization
- Flexible solutions for clinical and commercial scale viral vector production
- Process diversity and scale-up challenges in upstream processes
Who may this interest?
- R&D scientists
- Process development leaders
- Clinical manufacturing leaders
- Project/business development CDMO managers
Speakers
Jon Zmuda
Director, Cell Biology
Thermo Fisher Scientific (MA, USA)
Jonathan Zmuda is a Director of Cell Biology R&D within the Biosciences Division of Thermo Fisher Scientific located in Frederick, MD (USA). Within Cell Biology, Jon leads various teams that focus on developing new technologies for protein expression, viral vector production, transfection and classical cell culture. Dr Zmuda received his Ph.D. in Cell Biology from the University of Maryland, College Park (MD, USA) and his undergraduate degree from Dickinson College in Carlisle (PA, USA).
Julia Braun
Scientist, R&D, Cell Biology
Thermo Fisher Scientific
Julia Braun is an R&D Scientist of Cell Biology at Thermo Fisher Scientific in Carlsbad, CA (USA). She joined the company in 2014 and focused on building tools for genome engineering and functional screening including LentiArray CRISPR Libraries. Currently, she is focused on cell and gene therapy research with viral vector platform using AAV and lentivirus. Before join Thermo Fisher, she did postdoctoral research for “mitochondrial dysfunction-mediated oxidative stress in glaucoma” at Shiley Eye Institute, UCSD Medical School, in San Diego, CA (USA). She received her Ph.D. in Cell Biology and Pharmaceutical Sciences from Ewha Womans University in Seoul (South Korea).
Andy Campbell
Senior Director, Research and Development, Bioproduction
Thermo Fisher Scientific
Andy Campbell is a Senior Director of Cell Culture and Cell Therapy R&D within the Bioproduction Group of Thermo Fisher Scientific. He has a background in cell biology and biochemistry, and has been with the Thermo Fisher Scientific Bioproduction R&D team for 14 years. In that time, he has focused on media and process development for bio-therapeutic, and cell and gene therapy applications.
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