Past Conference

Drug Delivery Conference

Bridging the Gap Between Basic Science and Unmet Medical Needs

Date

28 Sep - 01 Oct 2015

Location

Tucson, Arizona, USA

Early Bird - Expired  •  Talk Submission - Expired  •  Poster Submission - Expired  •  Registration & Payment Deadline - Expired

Report

The first Drug Delivery conference organized by Fusion was chaired by Niren Murthy and Cameron Lee.  The conference was memorable for the superb quality of science and the beautiful setting, but likely it will be most frequently remembered for the snakes.

The conference goal was to “bridge the gap between basic science and unmet medical needs”, meaning that the organizers wanted the conference-goers on both sides of the aisle – academia and industry – to leave the event with an appreciation and awareness of the recent progress and challenges  experienced by each.  The organizers sought to invite speakers whose research was not “trendy”, but truly addressed unmet medical and technical needs.  The thematic sessions ranged from the mature to the emerging, including: new strategies for nucleic acid delivery; polymeric delivery vehicles, new protein therapeutics, targeting tumors, controlled/sustained release, immunoengineering, and new drug delivery strategies.  The quality of research presented was very good, with many presenters sharing unpublished results.  The audience seemed particularly engaged by the presentations on nucleic acids delivery (a field that is seeing major technological advances in delivery and human clinical validation) and immunoengineering (an established field that is being reinvigorated by recent clinical successes in immunooncology and new methodologies for targeting and modulating the human immune system).

The conference received sponsorship from Polypure, and recruited a eight media partners.  The organizers were fortunate to obtain commitments from many leaders in the drug delivery field as oral contributors, and there was an excellent breadth in research area, geography and age amongst the speakers.  Our presenters included: Mano Manoharan (Alnylam), Omar Khan (MIT), David Rozema (Arrowhead), David Schaffer (UC Berkeley), Ashtush Chilkoti (Duke), Craig Duval (Vanderbilt), Jianjun Cheng (U of Illinois), Adah Almutairi (UC San Diego), Patrick Stayton (U Washington), Thomas Barker (Georgia Tech), Christopher Jewell (Maryland), Kunwoo Lee (UC Berkeley), Gerrit Storm (Utrecht University), Glen Kwon (University of Wisconsin), Suzie Pun (University of Washington), Adam Renslo (UC San Francisco), Frank Szoka (UC San Francisco), Jason Burdick (U Pennyslvania), Eric Appel (MIT), Ravin Narain (U Alberta), Scott Grayson (Tulane), Richard Darcy (U Manchester), Kaushal Rege (Arizona State University), Kathryn Whitehead (Carnegie Mellon University), Darrel Irvine (MIT), Benjamin Keselowsky (U of Florida), Scott Wilson (EPFL), John Wilson (Vanderbilt), Kristy Ainslie (U North Carolina), Andrew Geall (Avidity Nanomedicines), Krishnendu Roy (Georgia Tech), Christoph Brauchle (University of Munich), and Millicent Sullivan (U of Deleware).  Four confirmed speakers had to cancel shortly before the conference.  Even with these cancellations, the agenda was very full and probably could have been shortened to accommodate more discussion time or longer presentation times.

The small size of the conference, and the high presenter:non-presenter ratio made for an excellent opportunity to network.  Students or early career attendees who made the effort to engage with the established faculty and industry representatives between sessions, over meals, or on the excursion will have benefitted immensely.  The feedback received anectodatally by the organizers was very positive, where the most common comment received related to the quantity of high calibar faculty present: the conference might have been a success, from a scientific perspective, even if only half the speakers had shown up!  If the organizers are able to attract a similar quality speaker lineup at a second Drug Delivery conference it should be very easy to attract a larger audience and repeat the success of the first installment.

Synopsis

This conference focuses on the design, synthesis and clinical validation of new drug delivery vehicles.  This conference is designed to bridge the gap between basic science and unmet clinical needs. 

Key Themes

  1. Immunoengineering: New materials for vaccine delivery, strategies for eliciting T cell responses, and nanoparticle based vaccines
  2. Nucleic Acid Based Therapeutics: New strategies for siRNA delivery, recent clinical advances in siRNA delivery, and viral gene therapy
  3. Protein Based Therapeutics: Intracellular protein delivery, endosomal disruptive strategies, and new protein based therapeutics
  4. New Delivery Strategies: New materials for drug delivery and other biomedical polymers
  5. Anatomical Challenges to Drug Delivery

2015 Drug Delivery Poster Prize

The conference chairs will be awarding 3 student poster prizes for the best poster display and presentation. To be in with a chance of winning, submit your poster by 20 July 2015. The winners will be selected shortly after the Poster Session and the following prizes will be awarded. 1st Place $350, 2nd Place $250, 3rd Place $150. 

Confirmed Plenary Speakers

Professor Patrick Stayton (University of Washington)
'OPENING THE INTRACELLULAR DISEASE TARGET SPACE TO BIOLOGIC DRUGS'
Prof. Dr. David Schaffer (UC Berkeley)
'DIRECTED EVOLUTION OF NEW VIRUSES FOR THERAPEUTIC GENE DELIVERY'
Professor Daniel Anderson (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
'NUCLEIC ACID DELIVERY SYSTEMS FOR RNA THERAPY AND GENE EDITING'
Dr. Andrew Geall (Avidity NanoMedicines LLC)
'SELF-AMPLIFYING mRNA VACCINES'
Professor Jason Burdick (University of Pennsylvania)
'ENGINEERED HYDROGEL DESIGN FOR CONTROLLED MOLECULE DELIVERY'
Professor Darrell Irvine (MIT/Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research)
'TARGETING THE IMMUNE SYSTEM FOR ENHANCED VACCINES AND CANCER IMMUNOTHERAPY'
Professor Francis Szoka (UCSF)
'WHAT DO ELIE METCHNIKOFF AND PAUL EHRLICH HAVE IN COMMON? AND, WHY SHOULD SCIENTISTS DEVISING NANODRUG CARRIERS CARE?'
Dr. Ashutosh Chilkoti (Duke University)
'STIMULUS RESPONSIVE ELASTIN LIKE POLYPEPTIDES FOR DRUG DELIVERY'
Professor Gerrit Storm (Utrecht University)
'CLINICAL TRANSLATION OF TARGETED NANOMEDICINES: THE UTRECHT EXPERIENCE'
Professor Suzie Pun (University of Washington)
'TARGETED DELIVERY USING PEPTIDE LIGANDS IDENTIFIED BY PHAGE DISPLAY' 

Confirmed Invited Speakers

Professor Jianjun Cheng (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
'CONTROLLED CHEMISTRY IN DRUG DELIVERY APPLICATIONS'
Professor Ravin Narain (University of Alberta)
'CARBOHYDRATE-BASED NANOMEDICINE FOR LIVER CANCER THERAPY'
Professor Benjamin Keselowsky (University of Florida)
'BIOMATERIAL-BASED IMMUNE MODULATION FOR TYPE 1 DIABETES'
Associate Professor Adah Almutairi (UC San Diego)
Professor Kristy Ainslie (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill)
'ACETALATED DEXTRAN: A SPOONFUL OF SUGAR HELPS THE MEDICINE (AND VACCINES) GO DOWN'
Associate Professor Eva Harth (Vanderbilt University)
'POLYMER NETWORKS IN NANO- AND MICRONSIZE' 
Professor Glen Kwon (University of Wisconsin)
'POLYMERIC MICELLES AND SOL-GELS FOR MULTI-DRUG DELIVERY'
Dr. Craig Duvall (Vanderbilt University) 
'POLYMERIC CARRIERS FOR “ON DEMAND” DELIVERY' 
Mr. David Rozema (Arrowhead)
'PROTEASE-TRIGGERED siRNA DELIVERY VEHICLES'
Dr. Eric Appel (MIT)
'POLYMER-NANOPARTICLE HYDROGELS: FROM FUNDAMENTALS TO ADVANCED HEALTHCARE SOLUTIONS'
Professor Thomas Barker (Georgia Institute of Technology)
'TARGETING CRYPTIC DOMAINS WITHIN THE EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX, A NOVEL MODALITY FOR DISCRIMINATION OF DISEASED AND NORMAL TISSUES'
Professor Scott Grayson (Tulane University)
'EXPLORING THE EFFECT OF PEI ARCHITECTURE ON GENE TRANSFECTION'
Dr. Scott Wilson (École Polytechnique Fédérale De Lausanne)
'VACCINATION WITH POLY(MANNOSE)-ANTIGEN CONJUGATES COMBINED WITH A NOVEL TLR7 AGONIST ENHANCES CELLULAR IMMUNE RESPONSE'
 

Target Audience

Academics, graduate students, postdocs, scientists, drug development and pharmaceutical companies interested in learning about current problems in drug delivery and the potential contributions that drug delivery can make to medicine.  

Confirmed Speakers

Chairs
Cameron Lee

Cameron Lee

Research Investigator, Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research

Niren Murthy

Niren Murthy

Professor, University of California at Berkeley

Plenary Speakers
David Schaffer

David Schaffer

Professor, University of California Berkeley

Andrew Geall

Andrew Geall

Vice President, Formulations and Chemistry, Avidity NanoMedicines LLC

Darrell Irvine

Darrell Irvine

Professor, MIT/ Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research

Ashutosh Chilkoti

Ashutosh Chilkoti

Professor and Chair, Duke University

Jason Burdick

Jason Burdick

Professor, University of Pennsylvania

Patrick Stayton

Patrick Stayton

Professor, University of Washington

Gerrit Storm

Gerrit Storm

Professor Targeted Nanomedicine, Utrecht University

Suzie Pun

Suzie Pun

Robert F Rushmer Professor of Bioengineering, University of Washington

Francis Szoka

Francis Szoka

Professor, University of California, San Francisco

Invited Speakers
Kristy Ainslie

Kristy Ainslie

Associate Professor, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Glen Kwon

Glen Kwon

Prof., University of Wisconsin

Jianjun Cheng

Jianjun Cheng

Professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

David Rozema

David Rozema

VP, Chemistry, Arrowhead Research

Ravin Narain

Ravin Narain

Professor, University of Alberta

Craig Duvall

Craig Duvall

Assistant Professor, Vanderbilt University

Scott Grayson

Scott Grayson

Associate Professor, Tulane University

Eric Appel

Eric Appel

Assistant Professor, Stanford University

Benjamin Keselowsky

Benjamin Keselowsky

Associate Professor, University of Florida

Scott Wilson

Scott Wilson

Post Doc, EPFL

Krishnendu Roy

Krishnendu Roy

Carol Ann and David D Flanagan Professor, Georgia Institute of Technology

Thomas Barker

Thomas Barker

Associate Professor, Georgia Institute of Technology

Adah Almutairi

Adah Almutairi

Associate Professor, University of California, San Digeo

Eva Harth

Eva Harth

Associate Professor , Vanderbilt University

Mano Manoharan

Mano Manoharan

Senior VP Drug Discovery, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals

Programme

 

Monday 28th September 2015

16:00 – 17:00

Registration & Refreshments

NEW STRATEGIES FOR NUCLEIC ACID DELIVERY
Session Chairs: Cameron Lee & Niren Murthy

17:00 – 17:10

Opening Comments

17:10 – 17:50

Mano Manoharan
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals

MAKING DRUGS OUT OF siRNAs

17:50 – 18:15

Omar Khan
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

NUCLEIC ACID DELIVERY SYSTEMS FOR RNA THERAPY AND VACCINATIONS

18:15 – 18:40

David Rozema
Arrowhead Research

PROTEASE-TRIGGERED siRNA DELIVERY VEHICLES

18:40 – 18:55

Millicent Sullivan
University of Delaware

COLLAGEN MIMETIC PEPTIDES FOR INTEGRATION OF GENE DELIVERY WITH TISSUE REPAIR

18:55 – 19:35

David Schaffer
University of California Berkeley

DIRECTED EVOLUTION OF NEW VIRUSES FOR THERAPEUTIC GENE DELIVERY

19:35

Group Dinner

Tuesday 29th September 2015

07:00 – 08:30

Group Breakfast

POLYMERIC DELIVERY VEHICLES
Session Chair: John Wilson

08:30 – 09:10

Ashutosh Chilkoti
Duke University

STIMULUS RESPONSIVE ELASTIN LIKE POLYPEPTIDES FOR DRUG DELIVERY

09:10 – 09:35

Craig Duvall
Vanderbilt University

POLYMERIC CARRIERS FOR “ON DEMAND” DELIVERY

09:35 – 10:00

Jianjun Cheng
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

CONTROLLED CHEMISTRY IN DRUG DELIVERY APPLICATIONS

10:00 – 10:25

Adah Almutairi
University of California, San Diego

THE ART OF FALLING APART: CONTROLLING POLYMER DEGRADATION FOR HEALTH SCIENCES AND MEDICINE

10:25 – 11:00

Refreshments

NEW PROTEIN THERAPEUTICS
Session Chair: Craig Duvall

11:00 – 11:40

Patrick Stayton
University of Washington

OPENING THE INTRACELLULAR DISEASE TARGET SPACE TO BIOLOGIC DRUGS

11:40 – 12:05

Niren Murthy
University of California at Berkeley

NEW STRATEGIES FOR TREATING INFECTIOUS DISEASES AND INFLAMMATION

12:05 – 12:20

Christopher Jewell
University of Maryland - College Park

DESIGN OF MULTILAYER VACCINES USING POLYIONIC IMMUNE SIGNALS

12:20 – 12:35

Kunwoo Lee
University of California, Berkeley

GOLD NANOPARTICLE-MEDIATED DELIVERY OF CRISPR/CAS9 RIBONUCLEOPROTEIN AND DNA DONOR FOR EFFICIENT GENOME EDITING IN VITRO AND IN VIVO

12:35 – 13:20

Group Lunch & Free Time

13:20 – 17:20

Group Tour to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum

TARGETING TUMORS
Session Chair: Scott Wilson

17:15 – 17:30

Refreshments

17:30 – 18:10

Gerrit Storm
Utrecht University

CLINICAL TRANSLATION OF TARGETED NANOMEDICINES: THE UTRECHT EXPERIENCE

18:10 – 18:35

Glen Kwon
University of Wisconsin

POLYMERIC MICELLES AND SOL-GELS FOR MULTI-DRUG DELIVERY

18:35 – 19:15

Suzie Pun
University of Washington

TARGETED DELIVERY USING PEPTIDE LIGANDS IDENTIFIED BY PHAGE DISPLAY

19:15 – 19:30

Adam Renslo
University of California, San Francisco

THE LABILE IRON POOL IS A TARGETABLE CHEMICAL ENVIRONMENT FOR CELL/TISSUE SELECTIVE DRUG DELIVERY

19:30 – 20:10

Francis Szoka
University of California, San Francisco

WHAT DO ELIE METCHNIKOFF AND PAUL EHRLICH HAVE IN COMMON? AND, WHY SHOULD SCIENTISTS DEVISING NANODRUG CARRIERS CARE?

20:10

Group Dinner

Wednesday 30th September2015

07:00 – 08:30

Group Breakfast

CONTROLLED / SUSTAINED RELEASE
Session Chair: Millicent Sullivan

08:30 – 09:10

Jason Burdick
University of Pennsylvania

ENGINEERED HYDROGEL DESIGN FOR CONTROLLED MOLECULE DELIVERY

09:10 – 09:35

Eric Appel
Stanford University

POLYMER-NANOPARTICLE HYDROGELS: FROM FUNDAMENTALS TO ADVANCED HEALTHCARE SOLUTIONS

09:35 – 09:50

Christoph Bräuchle
Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich

NANOPARTICLES AS “SMART” DRUG DELIVERY FERRIES IN NANOMEDICAL APPLICATIONS

09:50 – 10:30

Refreshments

NEW POLYMERS FOR DRUG DELIVERY
Session Chair: Eric Appel

10:30 – 10:55

Ravin Narain
University of Alberta

CARBOHYDRATE-BASED NANOMEDICINE FOR LIVER CANCER THERAPY

10:55 – 11:20

Scott Grayson
Tulane University

EXPLORING THE EFFECT OF PEI ARCHITECTURE ON GENE TRANSFECTION

11:20 – 11:45

Eva Harth
Vanderbilt University

POLYMER NETWORKS IN NANO- AND MICRONSIZE

11:45 – 12:00

Richard Darcy
University of Manchester

OXIDATION-RESPONSIVE POLYMERS: TAILORED SENSITIVITY TO REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES FOR DRUG DELIVERY PURPOSES

12:00 – 12:15

Kaushal Rege
Arizona State University

SYNERGISTIC APPROACHES FOR ENHANCING POLYMER-MEDIATED

12:15 – 12:30

Kathryn Whitehead
Carnegie Mellon University

RNA INTERFERENCE MEDIATED TREATMENT OF MANTLE CELL LYMPHOMA USING LIPIDOID NANOPARTICLES

12:30 – 12:45

Herschel Watkins
Biopact

MEDICAL GRADE CARBON NANOTUBES

12:45 – 16:00

Group Lunch & Free Time

IMMUNOENGINEERING
Session Chair: Niren Murthy

16:00 – 16:40

Darrell Irvine
MIT/ Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research

TARGETING THE IMMUNE SYSTEM FOR ENHANCED VACCINES AND CANCER IMMUNOTHERAPY

16:40 – 17:05

Benjamin Keselowsky
University of Florida

BIOMATERIAL-BASED IMMUNE MODULATION FOR TYPE 1 DIABETES

17:05 – 17:30

Scott Wilson
EPFL

VACCINATION WITH POLY(MANNOSE)-ANTIGEN CONJUGATES COMBINED WITH A NOVEL TLR7 AGONIST ENHANCES CELLULAR IMMUNE RESPONSE

17:30 – 17:45

John Wilson
Vanderbilt University

POLYMERIC NANOPARTICLES FOR DELIVERY TO CYTOSOLIC IMMUNE SURVEILLANCE MACHINERY

17:45 – 18:00

Kristy Ainslie
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

ACETALATED DEXTRAN: A SPOONFUL OF SUGAR HELPS THE MEDICINE (AND VACCINES) GO DOWN

18:00 – 18:45

Poster Session, Refreshments & Cocktail Reception

19:00 – 22:00

*Gala Dinner, Group Photo & Poster Awards*

Thursday 301st September 2015

07:00 – 08:30

Group Breakfast

NEW DRUG DELIVERY STRATEGIES
Session Chair: Cameron Lee

08:30 – 08.55

Thomas Barker
Georgia Institute of Technology

TARGETING CRYPTIC DOMAINS WITHIN THE EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX, A NOVEL MODALITY FOR DISCRIMINATION OF DISEASED AND NORMAL TISSUES

08:55 – 09:35

Andrew Geall
Avidity NanoMedicines LLC

SELF-AMPLIFYING mRNA VACCINES

09:35 – 10:00

Krishnendu Roy
Georgia Institute of Technology

CONTROLLING INNATE IMMUNE SIGNALING AND T CELL POLARIZATION THROUGH PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF PARTICULATE VACCINES

10:00

Farewell Comments & Refreshments

Supported by

Silver Sponsors
Endorsing Partners
Media Partners

Interested in sponsoring this conference?

Contact us

Venue & Location

El Conquistador Tuscon

Discover an oasis in the desert at the Hilton Tucson El Conquistador Golf & Tennis Resort. Located on over 500 acres in the shadows of the magnificent Pusch Ridge in Tucson, Arizona, the Hilton Tucson El Conquistador Golf & Tennis Resort offers some of the most pristine desert and mountain vistas in the Southwest. Nestled at the base of the breathtaking Santa Catalina mountains and surrounded by acres of high Sonoran Desert terrain, the resort offers an opportunity for guests to experience world-class resort amenities in a truly spectacular setting.

The Hilton Tucson El Conquistador Golf & Tennis Resort are winners of the 2015 TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence Award. This certificate is awarded to establishments that achieve outstanding traveler reviews on TripAdvisor, the world's largest travel site.

Throughout your stay you will enjoy a delicious buffet breakfast, lunch and dinner. During each meal delegates are entitled to a choice of hot beverages and soft drinks plus one house wine or bottled beer during dinner. The themed Gala Night takes place on the third evening of the conference with a mouth-watering feast exclusively designed by the head chef and a live band. Complimentary drink tickets will be handed out upon arrival. We welcome all delegates and their accompanying persons to the Gala Night – a truly fun filled night not to be missed!

Hotel Facilities Include:

- Automated Teller (ATM)
- Baggage Storage
- Coin Laundry
- Concierge Desk
- Gift Shop
- Guest Activity/Recreation Desk
- Laundry/Valet Service
- Luggage Hold
- Room Service
- Spa Services
- Basketball
- Bicycle Rental
- Driving Range
- Fitness Room
- Golf Course (45 holes)
- Hiking Trail
- Jogging Track
- 4 Swimming Pools
- Putting Green
- 31 Tennis Court
- Walking Track
- Walking Trail

General Information

Venue Rating

★ ★ ★ ★

Currency

US Dollar (USD)

Address

Nearest Airport

Tucson International Airport

Location

Arizona is the sixth largest state in the United States surrounded by truly breath taking views of mountains, valleys, high plateaus, narrow canyons and colourful stretches of the desert. The constant warm arid temperatures and clear starry night skies add to the beauty of this wonderful location. Arizona is home to the majestic Grand Canyon, one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. This famous and inspiring landmark can be incorporated into a day trip as an extension of the conference allowing our delegates to experience an unforgettable adventure!

Tucson is the second largest city in Arizona and the county seat of Pima County, Tucson neighbors the towns of Marana, Oro Valley, Catalina, South Tucson (an independent municipality in the heart of the city), Sahuarita, Vail, and Green Valley.  Tucson attracts nearly 7 million visitors a year; a place known for outstanding hiking and outdoor adventures, rich cultural traditions, a vibrant arts scene, world-class golf and great dining; and a thriving desert home to more than 1 million residents.

Silver Sponsors

Endorsing Partners

Media Partners

If you're interested in sponsoring this conference please contact us.

Conference Manager

Laura Trundle

Need some help? Chat to the Fusion team today

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