UCL’s first Advanced Therapies Symposium: Unveiling one of the largest pipelines from lab to market

UCL scientists gathered at the symposium to discuss their research in advanced therapies, from laboratories into commercialisation. The extensive pipelines unveil a huge potential for collaborations with research and commercial partners to bring life-changing impact to patients.

Photo 1: Professor Geraint Rees, Vice-Provost (Research, Innovation & Global Engagement) at UCL, spoke at the UCL Advanced Therapies Symposium to highlight the unique ecosystem and partnerships built for UCL's ATMP success.

On 24 April, UCL launched its first Advanced Therapies Symposium that attracted over 250 attendees from UCL and beyond, including UCL scientists, research and clinical collaborators, funding entities, and healthcare industry leaders specialising in Advanced Therapy Medicinal Product (ATMP) research and developments.

The ATMP report, released during the symposium, lays out the UCL’s key statistics in its ATMP research and commercialisation projects which represents one of the world’s largest development pipelines for Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (ATMP). It demonstrates the extensive experimental and clinical expertise spanning across disciplines, highlighting specialisms in Rare Diseases, Ophthalmology, Haematology/Oncology, Neurology, and Immunology.

Key figures from the report include:

• 100+ projects in development, from discovery, clinical trials through to market launch.
• Close to £80M in public funding to support the current active projects spanning preclinical stage and Phase I/II trials.
• One treatment for haemophilia A, Roctavian™, already licenced in the U.S and EU through UCL’s partner Biomarin.
• 54% of the UK’s entire ATMP academically sponsored clinical trials are conducted via UCL partner hospitals.
• 43% of the UK’s commercial sponsored trials are delivered by UCL partner hospitals.

The figures underline not just the research excellence of these complex therapies at UCL, but also its leading position in moving the advanced therapy field out of the research laboratories into commercialisation, with approved drugs being delivered to patients.

Over the past 10 years, UCL has successfully spun out twelve advanced therapy companies, which collectively have received in excess of £2Bn of external investment, with five companies having IPO’d.

At the symposium, UCL scientists discussed their expertise in advanced therapies, with a focus on UCL's early-stage research and clinical experience, alongside presentations on successful case studies. Panel discussions on industry and venture capital (VC) investments in spinouts, as well as clinical experience in delivering these complex therapies, inspired immense knowledge exchange on and off the stage.

Chairing the panel discussion on industry and VC investments, Dr. Anne Lane, CEO of UCL Business (UCLB), said, "The coordinated support between UCL, UCLB, and its partner hospitals—from science-trained business managers, translational research experts, and clinical facilities and units—creates a unique position for UCL to make every step towards successful commercialisation, helping to de-risk projects and maximise venture capital investment." 

Professor Geraint Rees, Vice-Provost (Research, Innovation & Global Engagement) at UCL, added in his closing remarks, "It is the precious ecosystem we have created over the years and partnerships with various stakeholders – from patients, hospitals, funding, research, and investment partners – that make UCL a global leader in advanced therapies. Our R&D and clinical pipelines are supported by unparalleled commercial pipelines along the translational pathway, enabling us to make a real impact on individual lives." 

The symposium is organised by the UCL Translational Research Office (TRO) and the Therapeutic Innovation Networks (TINs), and chaired by Professor Simon Waddington, Professor of Gene Therapy and Maternal & Fetal Medicine at UCL, who leads the Cell and Gene Therapy network under the TINs.

Photo 2: Professor Simon Waddington, Professor of Gene Therapy and Maternal & Fetal Medicine at UCL, kicked off UCL’s first Advanced Therapies Symposium.

Photo 3: Dr. Anne Lane, CEO of UCL Business, led the panel discussion on industry and venture capital investments in spinouts, joined by Professor Emma Morris (UCL), Professor Bobby Gaspar (UCL), Dr. Richard Fagan (UCLB), and Dr. Elisa Petris (Syncona Investment Management Ltd).

Photo 4: Professor Dimitri Michael Kullmann, Professor of Clinical and Experimental Epilepsy at UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, led the panel discussion on UCL’s clinicians' experience, joined by Professors Amit Nathwani, Sarah Tabrizi, Manju Kurian, and Claire Booth.

Photo 5a-b: UCL early career researchers (ECRs) across research disciplines showcased their research posters at the event and exchanged ideas with the attendees.

Photo 6a-b: The UCL Advanced Therapies Symposium presented unprecedented networking opportunities between UCL scientists and its research and industry partners, generating leads for potential collaboration opportunities.


Photo 7a-b: UCL’s first Advanced Therapies Symposium attracted over 250 attendees from UCL and beyond, including UCL scientists, research and clinical collaborators, funding entities, and healthcare industry leaders specialising in Advanced Therapy Medicinal Product (ATMP) research and developments. 

 

Read more:

• UCL ATMP report
• UCL Translational Research Office (TRO)
• UCL Therapeutic Innovation Networks (TINs)
  UCL Business (UCLB)
• US regulator approves first ever gene therapy for people with haemophilia A
• New gene therapy could significantly reduce seizures in severe childhood epilepsy
• UCL spin out Quell Therapeutics joins forces with AstraZeneca in $2billion deal
• UCL spinout pioneers rare disease gene therapy to treat children with severe genetic disorders

Event speakers (In order of appearance at the event):

• Professor Emma Morris
• Professor Paul Gissen
• Professor Bobby Gaspar
• Professor Gabriele Lignani
• Dr Haiyan Zhou
• Professor Amit Nathwani
• Professor Sarah Tabrizi
• Professor Qasim Rafiq
• Dr Claire Roddie
• Dr Stephanie Efthymiou
• Dr Annalucia Darbey
• Dr Amy McTague

Session chairs and panellists:

• Professor Geraint Rees
• Professor Simon Waddington
• Professor Dimitri Michael Kullmann
• Dr Rajvinder Karda
• Professor Daniel Bracewell
• Dr Anne Lane
• Dr Richard Fagan
• Professor Claire Booth
• Professor Manju Kurian

External panellist:
Dr Elisa Petris

Sponsors:

• UCL Business (UCLB)
• Biocair
• Bio-Techne
• GenScript
• Labcorp
• Lonza
• Thermo Fisher Scientific

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