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Dr. James M. Wilson delivered his keynote address to the conference (Photo: Business Wire)

Dr. Haichen Yang, the conference co-chair and immediate past president of SAPA-GP, opened the conference with a welcome address. Dr. James M. Wilson, Director of the Gene Therapy Program at the University of Pennsylvania and a world-renowned trailblazer in gene therapy, delivered the conference’s initial keynote address to a standing-room only crowd of over three hundred attendees. He was followed by a keynote address from Dr. Peter Marks, Director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research at the FDA, who supervises the development and approval of new cell and gene therapies in the U.S. Both speakers emphasized the need to lower the cost of cell and gene therapies and build a sustainable business model to cure patients.

Then the conference broke into five parallel tracks on gene therapy, CMC, and various business forums. Dr. Federico Mingozzi, CSO/CTO of Spark Therapeutics, gave the afternoon keynote speech on the process and challenges in developing AAV-based gene therapies.

The second day of the conference was opened by Dr. Yang Yuan, the conference co-chair and current president of SAPA-GP. Dr. Katherine High, visiting professor at Rockefeller University and a celebrated pioneer of gene therapy, made a keynote speech on the current state and challenges of the AAV gene therapy. The ensuing five parallel tracks addressed cell therapy, clinical development and regulatory, RNA therapy, as well as many business concerns of the day. In the afternoon, Sheila Mikhail, co-founder/former CEO of AskBio, gave the final keynote speech. She drew on her own life experience to illustrate the needs to deliver effective therapies to patients with rare conditions, who under current insurance models would be left untreated.

For two days, over seventy accomplished speakers delivered several dozen presentations, panel talks, and roundtable discussions. The @Philly forum, in collaboration with the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia, featured three panel talks dedicated to highlight Greater Philadelphia’s strengths and challenges in research, development, manufacturing, and entrepreneurship. Panelists engaged in in-depth analysis with audiences on the state of Greater Philadelphia’s biotech ecosystem.

“Happy to see so many scientific innovators and business leaders coming together to forge new paths into the future,” remarked Dr Haichen Yang, the conference co-chair and immediate past president of SAPA-GP.

“SAPA-GP is thrilled to organize the @Philly CGT conference to showcase Greater Philly’s leadership in the field of CGT and support Philly’s thriving biotech ecosystem. The conference was filled with excitement over latest innovations and rapid growth of the region’s biotech industry,” commented Dr. Yang Yuan, the conference co-chair and current president of SAPA-GP.

The 2024 @Philly Cell and Gene Therapy Annual Conference is scheduled to be held in June 2024. For more information about the programs and opportunities at SAPA-GP, please visit https://sapagp.org/.

About SAPA-GP

Founded in 2002, SAPA’s mission is to promote pharmaceutical sciences and biotechnology, facilitate scientific and business cooperation, and foster the career development of pharmaceutical professionals. With over 4,000 members, each year SAPA-GP hosts many programs in science, business, and career development. It exercises increasing influence in shaping favorable business environments in the Greater Philadelphia area.

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