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Orna Therapeutics is a biotechnology company dedicated to designing and delivering a new class of fully engineered circular RNA (oRNA) therapeutics with the potential to change the way we treat disease. Orna`s proprietary platform combines novel technology to create oRNAs that drive protein expression with validated and unique delivery solutions.
GPB Scientific is transforming the process of purifying and enriching cells for cell therapy production. Reliable cell recovery and expansion are fundamental to the successful scale up of CAR-T or any therapeutic cell manufacturing process. GPB has developed a high-throughput, automatable, microfluidic closed-system for leukapheresis sample preparation and downstream processing of cells for CAR-T and other cell therapy production. This breakthrough reduces cell losses and skill-intensive manual steps.
Neuralink is developing the capabilities of the brain through technological augmentation. A "neural lace” would be surgically connected to a human brain and allow a user to interact with a computer without the bandwidth challenges that come with current input methods, including keyboards, mice and trackpads. Neuralink will explore how brain interfaces might alleviate the symptoms of dangerous and chronic medical conditions.
Kezar co-founder Christopher Kirk, Ph.D. began his work on the unique function of the immunoproteasome at Proteolix in 2005, while working on the compound that would become the successful multiple myeloma drug KYPROLIS™ (carfilzomib). As VP of Research at Onyx Pharmaceuticals, which acquired Proteolix in 2009, Christopher led the efforts to develop the first selective inhibitors of the immunoproteasome and designed multiple studies demonstrating their profound immunomodulatory effects. In parallel with this work, Christopher and Kezar co-founder Jack Taunton, Ph.D. collaborated on several research projects involving protein secretion. This collaboration inspired a belief in the strong synergies between protein degradation and protein secretion, two fertile areas for drug discovery with platform potential. In 2014, Christopher and Kezar co-founder John Fowler began developing the business plan for Kezar, acting on a longstanding desire to work together and build a world-class company. In 2015, John and Christopher raised $23M and negotiated a worldwide, exclusive license agreement with Amgen for the Onyx immunoproteasome inhibitor patent estate. Now underway, John and Christopher are excited to leverage their complementary skill sets to build Kezar into a leader in small molecule drug development.
Mirna Therapeutics, Inc. (Mirna) is a biotechnology research and development company focused on miRNA-directed oncology therapies. Featuring world-class research capabilities, a strong understanding of miRNA and cancer biology, and a broad IP portfolio, Mirna Therapeutics is well-positioned to capitalize on the emerging field of miRNA-based therapeutics.