Drew Weissman, M.D., Ph.D. is a professor of Medicine at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania. He received his graduate degrees from Boston University School of Medicine. Dr. Weissman, in collaboration with Dr. Katalin Karikó, discovered the ability of modified nucleosides in RNA to suppress activation of innate immune sensors and increase the translation of mRNA containing certain modified nucleosides. The nucleoside-modified mRNA-lipid nanoparticle vaccine platform Dr. Weissman’s lab created is used in the first 2 approved COVID-19 vaccines by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna. They continue to develop other vaccines that induce potent antibody and T cell responses with mRNA–based vaccines. Dr. Weissman’s lab also develops methods to replace genetically deficient proteins, edit the genome, and specifically target cells and organs with mRNA-LNPs, including lung, heart, brain, CD4+ cells, all T cells, and bone marrow stem cells.

Nigel is Emeritus Professor of Chemical Engineering in the University of Cambridge, a Life Fellow and former President of Fitzwilliam College and a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.  He was formerly the University’s Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Enterprise and Regional Affairs and is the Qiushi Professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of Zhejiang.  

Nigel’s career has focused on the manufacture and formulation of biopharmaceuticals, principally cell and gene therapies, on which he has published over 200 articles in high impact journals.  He has led biomanufacturing development activities for Unilever Research in the Netherlands and for Wellcome Research in the UK.   He was a principal of the gene therapy company Cobra Biosciences Ltd., formed in 1995, which was acquired by Therexsys Ltd in 1996. Nigel joined the senior management team of the merged company, Cobra Therapeutics Ltd. which was acquired by ML Laboratories PLC in 2000.  Subsequently, Nigel was an NED and co-founder of Cobra Bio-Manufacturing plc; he chaired the Remuneration Committee, participated in the IPO on AIM in 2002, the market placings in 2003 and 2008, the acquisition and reconstruction of a manufacturing site in Oxford (2007) and the sale of the business to Recipharm AB in 2010.  Nigel was also a principal of Angel Technology Ltd, a nutraceutical company that won the UK Queen’s Award for Innovation 2006 and was jointly responsible for the sale of UK marketing rights to Emmi (CH) in 2004.  

Nigel advises international biopharmaceutical companies on development and biomanufacturing IP

issues for biopharmaceuticals and has been an expert witness in a number of high court judgements in Europe and Asia.

Professor Rongjun Chen completed his PhD and postdoctoral training at the University of Cambridge and joined the Imperial College London in 2013. Currently, he is a Professor of Biomaterials Engineering and serves as the Head of the Biomaterials and Nanomedicine Laboratory in the Department of Chemical Engineering. His research interests focus on polymer- and lipid-based formulations for targeted delivery of active pharmaceutical ingredients; in particular, biomacromolecular agents including nucleic acids. He has extensive experience in developing biomimetic polymers, lipid nanostructures, and virus-mimicking nanoparticles.

Professor Chen has a track record of collaborations with major companies and SMEs and has developed translational research programs for heat-stable vaccine formulations, cell and gene therapies, cancer treatments, and thrombotic disease therapy. He is also an Invited Member of the UK Lipid Nanoparticle (LNP) and Intracellular Delivery (ICD) Taskforce, headed by the Centre for Process Innovation from a request by the United Kingdom Vaccine Taskforce. Additionally, he is a core member of the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council’s Future Vaccine Manufacturing Research Hub based at Imperial College London, with research experience and expertise on heat-stable RNA vaccine formulations against COVID-19 and influenza virus.