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Connecting Biotech Entrepreneurs with Knowledge, Capital, and Talent

  • April 20, 2023
  • 1pm PT / 4pm ET
Online

The Soul of Science

Shaping the Future of Human Genomics

Program


Featuring George Church, PhD, Samira Kiani, MD, Kiran Musunuru, MD, & Barry Brown

The bioethics discussion around gene editing and CRISPR technology is complex, involving ethical, legal and social considerations. While this technology holds great potential for the treatment of genetic diseases, it also raises concerns about safety, equity and ethics. An increase in biotech investing has led to an acceleration of technological advancements, and life sciences startups are playing a significant role in shaping the future of human genetics.

Join the conversation with a stellar panel to explore how the scientific community can shape the soul of science.

Please submit your questions when you register.

Speakers

  • George Church LaunchBio

    George Church, PhD, Professor of Genetics at Harvard Medical School and Professor of Health Sciences and Technology at Harvard and MIT; Director of the US Department of Energy Technology Center and Director of the NIH Center of Excellence in Genomic Sciences

    George Church is a Professor of Genetics at Harvard Medical School and Professor of Health Sciences and Technology at Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). His pioneering work has contributed to the development of DNA sequencing and genome engineering technologies for which he received multiple awards including the 2011 Bower Award and Prize for Achievement in Science from the Franklin Institute and election to the National Academy of Sciences and Engineering. He co-authored over 550 publications, more than 150 patents, and a book titled “Regenesis: How Synthetic Biology Will Reinvent Nature and Ourselves”. He also initiated the Personal Genome Project and started over 20 companies

  • R. Alta Charo LauncBio

    R. Alta Charo, JD, Professor Emerita of Law and Bioethics at University of Wisconsin-Madison

    R. Alta Charo is Professor Emerita of Law and Bioethics at the University of Wisconsin, and now works as an independent consultant to industry and government on biotechnology ethics, policy, and regulation. Her emphasis is on therapeutics, but she also consults on issues related to biosecurity and agricultural/environmental applications. Charo is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine, for which she co-chaired its seminal reports on stem cell research and human genome editing.

  • Samira Kiani

    Samira Kiani, MD, Associate Professor at University of Pittsburgh, Co-Founder & CEO GenexGen and multimedia producer

    Samira Kiani is a genetic engineer, science communicator, and multimedia producer. She is the co-founder and CEO of GenexGen Inc, a startup company dedicated to innovating in the space of immunotherapies and vaccination by bringing advances in epigenetic therapies and cell therapies to immunology. Samira is an associate professor of pathology and bioengineering at University of Pittsburgh, where her research is focused on the novel epi/gene editing tools for controlling acquired conditions related to immunity and combining these tools with synthetic biology principles for safety and controllability. She started working in the area of genetic engineering in 2010 at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and started her own research lab at Arizona State University in 2016. Samira is also passionate about revisiting the current process of innovation. To do so, part of her work is dedicated to fostering science that is soulful, self-aware, human-centered, and informed by the collective wisdom of society.

  • Barry Brown

    Barry Brown, Tech and Social Impact Advisor

    Barry Brown has engaged in the field of individual and team transformation for the past 30 years. He works with entrepreneurs, start ups, and leaders in transition who desire to bring impact into new levels of performance. As former counselor/presenter to the GSP/Ventures of SU, Co-Founder of “be/do labs”, and Mentor/Coach to various business leaders and organizations, Barry uses his Masters Degree of Divinity to generate the process of transformation for leadership.

  • Kiran Musunuru

    Kiran Musunuru, MD, PhD, MPH, ML, Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine and Genetics in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania

    An actively practicing cardiologist and committed teacher, Kiran Musunuru, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H., M.L., is Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine and Genetics in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. His research focuses on the genetics of heart disease and seeks to identify genetic factors that protect against disease and use them to develop new therapies. He is author of The CRISPR Generation: The Story of the World’s First Gene-Edited Babies and Genome Editing: A Practical Guide to Research and Clinical Applications. He is co-founder and Senior Scientific Advisor of Verve Therapeutics.

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