Translational T Cell Talks: Scaling for the Future
As a scientist in the cell therapy field, you're at the forefront of developing groundbreaking therapies. Whether you're conducting translational T cell research or looking to manufacture T cell therapies, our comprehensive resources are designed to support and enhance your research endeavors. On June 11, 2024, STEMCELL Technologies hosted a half-day event, “Translational T Cell Talks: Scaling for the Future”, in collaboration with Scientist.com. This virtual conference consisted of a series of brief presentations from distinguished scientists and industry leaders, who offered insights into the latest news and technologies in the field, and a concluding roundtable discussion on how to improve collaboration between industry and academia. The presentations were focused on translational T cell research with insights on the latest CAR T cell developments.
Watch the Webinars
Combining CAR T Cells with STING Agonists to Fight Solid Tumors
In this webinar, Dr. Ugur Uslu described how IMSA101 enhances CAR T function through STING agonist-induced IL-18 secretion and how these findings lay the foundation for advancing the combinatorial approach into a clinical setting.
Next-Generation Cell Isolation Solutions for T Cell Therapy Research
Hear from Drs. Amanda Durkin and Frann Antignano (Q&A guest) to learn about STEMCELL Technologies’ cell isolation solutions for fast and easy T cell isolation, providing next-generation tools to enable researchers to streamline and accelerate their translational T cell research.
Advances in Point-of-Care Cell Engineering—What Are You Feeding Your CAR T Cells?
Learn from Dr. Julian Lum about key considerations when selecting metabolic assays and their utility for assessing cell function, explore data comparing the metabolic characteristics of various GMP-grade media formulations, and understand the importance of assessing media products and their impact on metabolism.
How to Optimize Your T Cell Therapy Workflow—Without the Use of Serum or Feeder Cells
In this talk, Dr. Dominika Nackiewicz introduces how STEMCELL can help optimize your T cell cultures—with robust, high-performance products and expert support. Learn how to generate high yields of functional T cells and to generate T cells from pluripotent stem cells or hematopoietic progenitors.
Non-Viral CRISPR Knock-In Anti-B7-H3 CAR-T Cells Are Amenable for Treatment of Subtypes of Small Cell Lung Cancer
Hear from scientist Vimal Keerthi as he discusses his work on the development of non-viral CRISPR knock-in anti-B7-H3 CAR T cells for the treatment of small cell lung cancer (SCLC), and how this platform provides a blueprint for immediate clinical translation overcoming the bottleneck of viral vector production.
Key Regulatory Considerations for Moving Your Cell Therapy Research to the Clinic
To help you reduce time and costs for translational projects, Lynn Csonotos and Mike Jones will guide you through key regulatory considerations that will support the success of your clinical candidates. Learn about the latest developments in the regulatory landscape and the key considerations for qualifying ancillary/raw materials for use in T cell therapy development.
Panel Discussion: Improving Collaboration Between Industry and Academia in the Field of CAR T Cell Therapy
Our panel of experts discuss fostering effective collaborations between academic institutions and the biotechnology industry to overcome existing challenges and enhance therapeutic outcomes.
Key Topics Include:
- Existing Collaborations in CAR T Research
- Challenges and Opportunities in CAR T research
- Navigating Regulatory and Material Qualification
Meet the Speakers
Amanda Durkin, PhD
Immunology
STEMCELL Technologies
Dr. Durkin received her PhD in Biomedical Science with a focus on immunology from Laurentian University. She is currently a Product Manager for immunology at STEMCELL Technologies, where she helps transform innovative ideas and technologies into reliable products and quality solutions.
Ugur Uslu, MD
University of Pennsylvania
Dr. Uslu completed his clinical training in Dermatology at Erlangen University in Germany. In addition to translational research on dendritic cell-based cancer vaccines, he worked on strategies to improve CAR T cell therapy directed against solid tumors and is currently in training as a postdoctoral research fellow in the laboratory of Dr. Carl June at the University of Pennsylvania.
Frann Antignano, PhD
STEMCELL Technologies
Dr. Frann Antignano is a Principal Scientist at STEMCELL Technologies, where she leads a team of researchers who develop innovative products to isolate and expand immune cells. Frann completed her PhD in Immunology at the University of British Columbia, where she studied lipid signaling and its role in dendritic cell differentiation and function.
Julian J. Lum, PhD
Deeley Research Centre, BC Cancer
University of Victoria
Dr. Julian J. Lum obtained his PhD in Immunology from the University of Ottawa. His lab at Deeley Research Centre at BC Cancer focuses on identifying metabolic targets for cell-based immunotherapy, where Dr. Lum’s core approach is to metabolically engineer CAR T cells using CRISPR-Cas-based gene-editing to overcome metabolic barriers in the tumor microenvironment.
Dominika Nackiewicz, PhD
Immunology
STEMCELL Technologies
Dr. Nackiewicz received her PhD in Experimental Medicine from the University of British Columbia and received additional immunology training at the University of Virginia and Yale University. She is currently a Product Manager for immunology and immune cell culture applications at STEMCELL Technologies, where she helps to convert new ideas into innovative, reliable products.
Jessie Yu, MD
Human/Mouse Immunology
STEMCELL Technologies
Dr. Jessie Yu is a Senior Scientist at STEMCELL Technologies, where she has spent 14+ years developing new products in immune cell research. She received her MD in 2001 from Shandong University and MSc in Immunology in 2006 from the Univeristy of British Columbia. With a background in medicine and immunology research, Dr. Yu firmly believes in adoptive cell therapy as a breakthrough tool to treat many diseases.
Mike Jones, MSc
Clinical Services and Alliances
STEMCELL Technologies
Mike Jones, Director of Clinical Services and Alliances at STEMCELL Technologies, has worked in the biotechnology industry for over 12 years, notably in Product Management and Regulatory Affairs. In the last 7 years, he has focused on supporting customers with the use of STEMCELL products as ancillary/raw materials for cell therapy manufacturing.
Lynn Csontos
Regulatory Affairs
STEMCELL Technologies
Lynn Csontos, Vice President of Regulatory Affairs at STEMCELL Technologies, has worked in the biotechnology industry for over 25 years. Her background is primarily with small molecule API and drug products, and she uses that knowledge to navigate the regulatory landscape currently being defined for cellular, gene, and tissue-engineered therapies.
Vimal Keerthi
Center for Cancer Cell Therapy
Stanford Medicine
Vimal Keerthi is a Process Development and Manufacturing Scientist in Dr. Steven Feldman’s group at Stanford University’s Center for Cancer Cell Therapy (CCT). His work focuses on developing CAR T manufacturing platforms, helping bridge the gap from bench to bedside, and enabling clinical trials for cancer treatments.
Tim Le Fevre
Immunology
STEMCELL Technologies
Tim Le Fevre is a Senior Scientist working as part of the Immunology – Culture & Applications team within the Research & Development department at STEMCELL Technologies. He has worked at STEMCELL for more than 10 years developing STEMdiff™ and StemSpan™ immune cell kits that enable researchers to differentiate human pluripotent stem cells or cord blood-isolated hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells into monocytes, T cells, or NK cells.
Patrick Hanley, PhD
Children’s National Hospital
Patrick Hanley, PhD, is Chief Director of the Cellular Therapy Program and an Associate Professor of pediatrics in the Center for Cancer and Immunology Research at the Children’s National Research Institute and Member of the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders and the Division of Blood and Marrow Transplantation. Dr. Hanley is passionate about improving the potency of existing cellular therapies and reducing the time it takes to get them to patients and he has overseen the manufacture of over 300 cellular therapy products.
Nooshin Tabatabaei-Zavareh, PhD
STEMCELL Technologies
Dr. Tabatabaei-Zavareh is Associate Director, Immune Cell Culture in the Research and Development department at STEMCELL Technologies. Nooshin received her PhD in Immunology at the University of British Columbia where she studied NK cell development. Over the past 12 years, she has contributed to the development of products for immunology research at STEMCELL. Currently, Nooshin leads the Immune Cell Culture Team, providing solutions for the generation, expansion, and differentiation of immune cells.
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