The Gates Institute at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus had another remarkable year in 2024, marked by groundbreaking research, innovative collaborations, and the inspiring work of our community. Here are the top 10 blog posts from the past year, showcasing the highlights of our achievements and impact:
Five individuals with biotechnology expertise have been recruited by Gates Institute to form a new scientific advisory board. They will provide strategic and scientific input to guide specific cell and gene therapy programs, with a focus on increasing patient impact, prioritizing near- and long-term goals, and exploring new platforms, said Gates Institute Executive Director Terry Fry, MD. This board will supplement the scientific expertise of the larger Gates Institute Advisory Board, which advises Fry and other members of the executive committee on matters ranging from marketing to intellectual property.
In the rapidly evolving field of cell therapy, the transition from research to clinical application is filled with challenges, particularly within Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) production during first-in-human, early-phase clinical trials. These trials set the groundwork for both safety (primarily) and efficacy (secondarily) as therapies advance toward commercialization. Understanding the operational intricacies involved in manufacturing cell therapy products for these trials is crucial for stakeholders, including sponsors, innovators, investors, and regulatory compliance professionals.
From an early age, Cheri Adams, program director of regulatory strategy at the Gates Institute, knew she would pursue a career in medicine. But it was her experience as an organ donor that led her to a career in clinical research. She came to appreciate that clinical trials are at the heart of all medical advances. Such research offers hope for many people stricken with disease and disability, and the chance to find better treatments and cures.
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has shown great promise in the treatment of certain leukemias and lymphoma, but results in solid tumors have not been as impressive. The poor efficacy of CAR T cells in solid tumors is in part due to the lack of suitable cancer-associated antigens. Gates Institute member Joshua Thurman, MD, a professor in the division of renal diseases and hypertension in the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine, and his team have found that the immune system tags tumor cells with a novel molecule, which could lead the way to creating a CAR to target solid tumors. He was recently awarded Gates Grubstake funding to continue this research.
When the Gates Summer Internship Program (GSIP) launched in 2015, the field of regenerative medicine was at a pivotal moment, with recent developments in cell and gene therapy being heralded by the scientific community. We recently reconnected with three former interns making significant contributions to their fields. Though their educational paths have been uniquely their own, the values they learned through the Gates experience continue to support them in work — and in life.
Gates Institute recently announced four recipients of the 2023 Gates Grubstake Fund. These awards are designed to support investigators who are researching and developing regenerative medicine-related technologies. The awards of up to $350,000 are made annually in a process administered in collaboration with CU Innovations. The fund made awards totaling over $1.4 million to University of Colorado Anschutz researchers in 2023.
Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE: CRL) and the Gates Institute at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus today announced a lentiviral vector contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) agreement. Gates Institute will leverage Charles River’s premier cell and gene therapy CDMO expertise to develop Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)-grade lentiviral vectors (LVVs) for use in novel chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies for hematological cancers.
Navin Pinto, MD, a professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine on the CU Anschutz Medical Campus, has been named medical lead at Gates Institute. In this role, he’ll work in partnership with the Investigational New Drug and Device (IND/IDE) Office to oversee Gates Institute-supported clinical trials, providing expertise drawn from his extensive experience with chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy.
A new phase 1 study of a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy at Children’s Hospital Colorado for pediatric patients with relapsed or refractory pre B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) recently enrolled its first patient. The trial is the latest launched through Gates Institute, and is the fifth for which the Gates Biomanufacturing Facility produces the CAR T-cell product for research at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.