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:
Cindy Perettie, EVP Kite Pharma
PMWC Award Ceremony
• Michel Sadelain, Columbia
• Arie S. Belldegrun, Allogene Therapeutics
Keynote: Engineering the Future: Innovations in CAR-T Therapy Design
• Michel Sadelain, Columbia
CAR-T Cell Therapies: Strategies in Mitigating Challenges in Solid Tumor Delivery
• Chair: David Barrett, Kite
• Carl June, University of Pennsylvania
• Michel Sadelain, Columbia
Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes (TILs): Advances and Challenges in Solid Tumors
• Chair: Allison Betof Warner, Stanford
• George Coukos, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research
• Max Julve, Royal Marsden
• Stephanie Goff, NIH/NCI
Allogeneic & In Vivo Cell Therapies: Manufacturing & Clinical Progress
• Chair: Arie S. Belldegrun, Allogene Therapeutics
• David Chang, Allogene Therapeutics
• Adrian Bot, Capstan Therapeutics
• Aliya Omer, AstraZeneca
• Priti Hegde, Kite Pharma
Designing Automated Platforms for Scalable Cell Therapy Manufacturing
Fabian Gerlinghaus (Cellares)
TCR-Based Cell Therapies: New Targets and Clinical Advances
• Chair: Diwakar Davar, UPMC
• Lauren Harshman, Clasp Therapeutics
• Cassian Yee, MD Anderson
Gene Editing & Synthetic Biology for Therapy
• Chair: Matthew Porteus, Stanford
• Rachel Haurwitz, Caribou Biosciences
• Kole T. Roybal, Parker Institute
• Ken Drazan, ArsenalBio
Synthetic Circuits for Smarter Cell Therapies: Enhancing NK Precision and Persistence
Gudrun Stengel, Alida BioSciences
