Speaker Profile
PMWC LUMINARY AWARD
Co-invented CRISPR base editing for precise single-letter DNA changes
Ph.D., Associate Professor, UCSD
Biography
Alexis C. Komor is a pioneering genome‑editing researcher who co‑developed the first CRISPR base editors with David Liu at the Broad Institute. Her work established base editing as a new class of genome engineering tools that enable precise single‑nucleotide changes in DNA without double‑strand breaks, laying the foundation for correcting disease‑causing point mutations with high precision. She continues to lead efforts to translate these innovations into direct in vivo therapeutics, including strategies to deliver base editors via mRNA and other nucleic‑acid platforms to repair genes within patients’ cells. As her work established the scientific foundation of Beam Therapeutics, Komor has helped drive the clinical development of base editing, underscoring the broad impact of her work on programmable gene editing and precision medicine. Her groundbreaking contributions are influencing a new generation of in vivo RNA and gene‑based therapies (spanning mRNA, siRNA, and antisense oligonucleotide modalities) and inspiring novel small‑molecule approaches to treat genetic diseases.
Session Abstract – PMWC 2026 Silicon Valley
Track Chair:
Priti Hegde, Kite Pharma
PMWC Award Ceremony
• Michel Sadelain, Columbia University
• Arie S. Belldegrun, Allogene Therapeutics
Keynote: Engineering the Future: Innovations in CAR-T Therapy Design
• Michel Sadelain, Columbia University
Keynote: The Industrialization of Cell Therapy:From Autologous Pioneers to Allogeneic Frontiers
• Arie S. Belldegrun, Allogene Therapeutics
Next Generation CAR-T Cell Therapies: Expanding Targets and Enhancing Designs
• Chair: David Barrett, Kite Pharma
• Carl June, University of Pennsylvania
• Michel Sadelain, Columbia University
Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes (TILs): Advances and Challenges in Solid Tumors
• Chair: Allison Betof Warner, Stanford University
• George Coukos, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research
• Max Julve, Stanford
• Stephanie Goff, NIH/NCI
Allogeneic & In Vivo Cell Therapies: Manufacturing & Clinical Progress
• Chair: Arie S. Belldegrun, Allogene Therapeutics
• Zach Roberts, Allogene Therapeutics
• Adrian Bot, Capstan Therapeutics
• Aliya Omer, AstraZeneca
• Priti Hegde, Kite Pharma
Smart Scaling: Leverating AI & Automation to De-Risk Advanced Therapy Manufacturing
• Chair: Stacie Calad-Thomson
• Samuel Rodriques, FutureHouse
• Manuel Leonetti, Biohub
• Fabian Gerlinghaus, Cellares
Designing Automated Platforms for Scalable Cell Therapy Manufacturing
• Fabian Gerlinghaus, Cellares
In Vivo CAR Therapy: Immune Reprogramming Directly in Patients
• Daniel Getts, Myloid Therapeutics
Operationalizing Cell & Gene Therapy Trials in a Large Health System
•Snehit Prabhu, Stanford
Gene Editing & Synthetic Biology for Therapy
• Chair: Trevor Martin, Mammoth Biosciences
• Ken Drazan, ArsenalBio
• Lynn Seely, Lyell
• Kole T. Roybal, Parker Institute
• David Kirn, 4DMT
