Learn about cell and gene therapy latest scientific research, developments, industry challenges and solutions.
The Uncomfortable Truth About Your “Perfect” Healthy Donors Here’s a question that should keep every cell therapy developer awake at night: Why are you developing
Why scientists need a procurement model If you can’t explain total cost of ownership (TCO) in lab terms, procurement will do it for you –
Teams will optimize PBMC isolation for weeks and then improvise the samples thaw process. That’s backwards. Thaw is where you either protect what you banked
Why minutes matter in Clinical Cell Handling Time between sample collection and the first isolation step isn’t just logistics: it’s biology. The shorter and more
Cord blood is a rich source of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), which are immature cells that can develop into all types of blood cells. This
Cutting-edge FDA-approved therapies made from human cells are now being used to treat cancer, diabetes, and other diseases. Currently, most approved cell-based therapies use an
Cell and gene therapy development grapples with a paradox: fresh starting material is often equated with higher-quality drug products, but cryopreservation is crucial for scale-up.
Sponsors conducting clinical trials require the collection of participant blood samples at specific intervals and over a rolling period, necessitating an experienced cell processing solutions
Advanced cell-based therapies, such as chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell therapies, are changing the landscape of healthcare, expanding treatment options for patients beyond previous standards
This case study examines how OrganaBio’s unique Hub Processing Model successfully addressed the critical needs of two multinational pharmaceutical companies conducting mRNA vaccine trials for
Critical Gaps in Sample Processing Capabilities are Hindering Clinical Trial Advancement With the global Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the resurgence of other viral
INTRODUCTION The monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) daratumumab, and elotuzumab have been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for treating multiple myeloma (MM) in 2015.
OrganaBio and its wholly-owned leukapheresis collection subsidiary, HemaCenter, have designed processes and procedures to curate and maintain a highly recallable donor pool. Access to robust,
Current good manufacturing practice (cGMP) is a set of regulations instituted and enforced by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that “assure proper design,
While Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) matching is often emphasized in the context of bone marrow and organ transplant, HLA typing is used to identify disease-related
Natural Killer (NK) cells have been considered a part of the innate immune system due to their lack of antigen specific receptors. Unlike other lymphocytes
Delayed umbilical cord clamping has a variety of benefits for newborns and is the current standard of care at the time of delivery. Does your
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are nanometer-scale, lipid bilayer enclosed structures that are secreted by cells. EVs elicit complex signaling functions in other cells that encounter these vesicles.
What do a woman suffering from Psoriasis, a man dying after acute rejection of kidney transplant, and a child suffering from Pulmonary Tuberculosis due to
With the rapid advancement of cell therapies, there is a demand for cellular starting materials that are robust, reproducible, well-characterized, and clinically relevant. Many adoptive
Mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) are multipotent progenitor cells that possess robust anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory properties. Due to their apparent safety and their ability to secrete
Some say that CAR-T (Chimeric Antigen Receptor T cell) revolutionized cell therapy and transformed the manufacturing technologies of the industry. Following the approval and success
Over the last several years, the field of cell therapy has rapidly advanced and became a promising strategy to combat disease. The cell therapy global
In late August, we reported about the clinical trial landscape utilizing immune cell-based therapies for COVID-19. The original search revealed 15 total relevant trials, out of which
At the beginning of August, we searched the clinicaltrials.gov database to learn more about the U.S.-based clinical trial landscape of mesenchymal stromal cell (MSC) based
In this presentation, OrganaBio’s Head of Process & Product Development highlights our approach to setting the stage early in process development for sustained manufacturing success.
Breakthroughs in immunotherapy, such as chimeric antigen receptor T cell (CAR-T) therapy and checkpoint inhibition antibodies, have led to a rejuvenated interest in the human immune system. Insights from
Simple Science: Cardiac Regenerative Medicine The field of cardiac regenerative medicine is rapidly developing solutions to treat the millions of people around the world affected
Immune Cell-based Therapies for COVID-19: Current Clinical Trial Landscape Data One element of COVID-19 is a hyper-response of the patient’s immune system, which in turn
MSC-Based Therapies for COVID-19: Current Clinical Trial Landscape Data Mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) are emerging as a potential treatment modality for COVID-191-3. MSCs have immunomodulatory
In late 2019, cases of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) began to emerge out of Wuhan, China. Since then, the disease has proven to be highly
De-Risking the Path to Cell & Gene Therapy Commercialization Part 1: You Need Access to a Robust and Reliable Donor Pool When cell and gene
OrganaBio was founded in 2018 by scientists and business leaders motivated to bring next generation regenerative medicine therapies to market. Since then, we have assembled
At OrganaBio, we believe that nothing truly worthwhile is easy…. But we can make it easier for our partners and customers. That’s why we set
In this presentation, OrganaBio’s CEO, Justin Irizarry, gives an overview of OrganaBio’s capabilities and how they can be leveraged to support the development and commercialization
Managing Director, CPC Services
Andrew joins OrganaBio as a project manager with varied experience in project management, client relations, and process improvement.
Prior to OrganaBio, Andrew was a client relations manager for the cGMP nucleic acids business unit at Aldevron, coordinating and managing contracts at each stage of the contract lifecycle in support of cell and gene therapy program development. Andrew supported small- and large-scale biotechnology and pharmaceutical clients anywhere from pre-IND work through commercial supply chain establishment. Before Aldevron, Andrew was a project manager for the commercialization and business development department for Sanford Health, a worldwide hospital institution. At Sanford Health, Andrew helped manage medical device patent and prototype development efforts for employee innovations primarily in the cardiovascular, neurovascular, and software spaces. Andrew was also an engineer for Atirix Medical Systems and supported the buildout of automated analysis worksheets to streamline radiology department quality control procedures.
Andrew received his Bachelor of Science in Physics from Minnesota State University Moorhead and his Master of Science in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Minnesota. At the University of Minnesota, Andrew was part of the Center for Magnetic Resonance Research, assisting efforts to automate MRI dataset registration and workflow improvement.
Associate Director, QC and Analytical Development
Michael Dee has spent the last 17 years researching the immune system. Initially studying the recombinant cytokine IL-2 and its role in T cell subset differentiation and function at the University of Miami. He also helped elucidate the lower level of TCR diversity of T regs required to prevent autoimmunity in mice. Michael also supported construction, cloning, production, purification, and testing both in vitro and in vivo a novel IL-2/IL2Rα complex currently under clinical development with BMS. Michael also was a member of the department of immunology’s program project delineating the effect of a novel Eg7GP96 heat shock protein vaccine on tumor immunity.
While at Immunity Bio (formerly Altor Biosciences), he helped to characterize over 20 novel drugs for immune modulation and treatment of cancer. After Immunity Bio, Michael was a founding team member of HCW Biologics, where he continued his role in design and initial production and characterization of several novel biologics. He has experience with proof of principle experiments with the generation CAR-NK and CAR T cells. His research at HCW was highlighted by his discovery of a process using novel biologics to activate and expand CIML NK cells. The process and rights were sold to Wugen and is currently in Phase I clinical trials. He also is listed as an Inventor on patent number: US20210268022A1 on method of activating regulatory T cells.
Senior Cell Processing Specialist
Senior Bioprocess Scientist
Director, Regional Scientific Sales
Marisa has experience leading marketing and sales life sciences programs for over a decade. Originally a lab researcher, she made the jump to marketing & sales in life sciences and never looked back.
At OrganaBio, she connects cell therapy developers on the West coast and in Asia with the healthy donor starting materials they need to develop their therapies. Prior to OrganaBio, she was the cell therapy marketing lead at Invetech, heading the launch of the company’s first cell therapy product. Marisa has led marketing programs at clinical supply companies Sherpa Clinical Packaging and PCI Pharma Services. In her spare time, Marisa enjoys traveling, eating, and pretending she’s a tennis player. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Biology from Reed College and an MBA from Portland State University.
Senior Director, Tissue Procurement
Vice President, Operations
Vice President, Quality & Regulatory Affairs
Senior Director, Quality Assurance
Danielle Smyla, M.S., brings 14 years of Quality Assurance and GMP experience in the Biotechnology and Medical Device industries. Ms. Smyla is an established Quality Leader with expertise in the implementation, management and continuous improvement of Quality Management Systems for GMP operations.
Prior to joining OrganaBio, Danielle was a key member of the Quality Management team at Canon BioMedical, where she led the cross-functional development and implementation of their Quality Management System. She also managed a team of Quality Specialists and Sr. Specialists, coaching them in the implementation, management and identification of improvements to quality processes.
Ms. Smyla’s Quality-focused career is complimented by valuable hands-on experience in GMP product manufacturing, as well as R&D laboratory experimentation and formulation work in support of product development.
Danielle has earned a Master’s in Biotechnology from the Johns Hopkins University and a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from the George Washington University.
Chief Business Officer
Dr. Baraniak is a proven strategic thinker, problem solver and leader who brings 20 years of expertise in stem cells and tissue engineering, coupled with a keen business acumen, to OrganaBio. Dr. Baraniak has published multiple peer-reviewed papers and book chapters on the use of stem cells and biomaterials in cardiac repair and regeneration and is routinely invited to speak at conferences.
Before joining OrganaBio, Priya was a founding member of RoosterBio and was a vital member of the company’s Leadership Team. At RoosterBio, Priya leveraged her technical expertise to build and rapidly scale the company’s sales and marketing engines in a fast-paced start-up environment, delivering impressive growth in revenue year-over-year. Additionally, in her role as Business Development lead at RoosterBio, Priya structured, negotiated and executed multiple strategic partnerships for aggressive growth of the organization.
Priya’s industry experience includes a role as Senior Director of R&D for Garnet BioTherapeutics, a clinical-stage stem cell-based regenerative medicine company, where Priya led multiple projects on tissue repair and regeneration using mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-based therapeutics and devices. While at Garnet Bio, Priya also worked on the company’s FDA filings, contributed to drafting and prosecuting the company’s patent portfolio, managed CRO, CMO and industry partner relationships and actively participated in establishing Garnet’s strategic R&D plan, thereby gaining critical insights into business operations across a small organization.
Priya’s scientific training began as an undergraduate student at Duke University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Engineering (BSE) from Duke University in 2001 after double majoring in Electrical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering. While at Duke, Priya conducted research in the lab of Dr. Doris A. Taylor on the use of skeletal myoblasts and stem cells for cardiac repair and regeneration. Priya went on to receive her Ph.D. in Bioengineering from the University of Pittsburgh in 2008. She completed her dissertation research in the laboratory of Dr. William R. Wagner working on developing a controlled release biodegradable elastomer for applications in cardiovascular regenerative medicine. In 2008, Priya joined Dr. Todd McDevitt’s lab in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University as a post-doctoral fellow. Her post-doctoral research as an American Heart Association Fellow focused on harnessing the secretome and isolating the extracellular matrix from MSCs and other cell types, including pluripotent stem cells, for cardiac tissue repair and regeneration. Priya co-authored many grants while a post-doc and went on to contribute critical sections to a NIST grant that resulted in the first ever National Cell Manufacturing Consortium in the United States.
Lab Director
Sarah Alter, Ph.D., has 15 years of immunology research experience which includes autoimmunity, cancer, and infectious disease.
Before her position at OrganaBio, Sarah was responsible for leading a team of scientists at Altor Bioscience where she facilitated the advancement of Altor’s technologies. As a Research and Development Manager, Dr. Alter coordinated immunotherapy-focused preclinical and clinical studies and contributed to the progress of Altor’s drug discovery and therapeutic applications.
Sarah received her Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine. She is also a registered Patent Agent, licensed to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Her work was published in many peer-reviewed journals and presented at national and international business and scientific meetings.
Vice President, Sales
Director, Quality Systems
Oscar Robles has over thirty years of experience in pharmaceutical and medical device industries. His main areas of expertise are in Quality Systems, Quality Assurance, Manufacturing Systems Validation, Computerized Systems Validation, implementation of GxP Computerized Systems and ERP Systems such as TrackWise, Electronic Document Management, JDEwards, SAP, and Oracle. Prior to joining OrganaBio, Oscar was a member of the Quality Management team at Apotex – Aveva Drug Delivery Systems for ten years. Oscar has earned a Master’s in Business Administration from Nova Southeastern University and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Florida International University.
