RNA-Targeting Therapies: Potential Determinants of Sustained HBV Suppression

HBV Cure:

RNA targeting therapies: potential determinants of sustained HBV suppression

23 September 2023

09:00 – 12:10 am JST

CORRESPONDING TIMES:

• Paris: 2:00 am UTC +2 hours
• Beijing: 8:00 am UTC +8 hours
• Johannesburg: 2:00 am UTC +2 hours
• New York: 8:00 pm UTC -4 hours
• San Francisco: 5:00 pm UTC -7 hours

Program:

23 September 2023

Bios:

Maura Dandri: Dr. Dandri received her Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Trieste, Italy. Her training included a Postdoctoral Fellowship at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, NY, US, and an EMBO-Long-term Postdoc-Fellowship at Leibniz Institute for Virology, Hamburg. She was awarded a Heisenberg Professorship from the German Research Foundation (DFG) before becoming a full Professor at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Germany, where she leads the Research Group Viral Hepatitis. Her research focuses on developing models to study interactions between hepatitis viruses, human hepatocytes, and immune cells. Her team is experienced in investigating new HBV and HDV therapies using humanized mice and through the analysis of patient liver biopsies.

Adam Gehring: Dr. Gehring received his Ph.D. at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, followed by a Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Institute of Hepatology at University College London. He was a Senior Research Fellow and later an Assistant Principal Investigator at the Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences. He then moved to Saint Louis University as an Assistant Professor before joining the Toronto Center for Liver Disease as Biology Lead. His research focuses on the pathogenesis of human infection and immune response, particularly defining the mechanisms driving liver inflammation during HBV-related flares using functional and transcriptomic approaches in liver biopsies.

John Tavis: Dr. Tavis is a Professor of Molecular Virology at Saint Louis University School of Medicine, Director of the Saint Louis University Institute for Drug and Biotherapeutic Innovation, and Fellow of the Saint Louis University Research Institute. He studies HBV replication and enzymology, focusing on the biochemistry of the HBV ribonuclease H and developing drugs to suppress HBV replication that target this enzyme. He is the Chairperson of the Scientific Advisory Council for the annual International HBV Meeting, Chairperson of the International Coalition to Eliminate HBV (ICE-HBV), and a Senior Member of the National Academy of Inventors. He received the Mission Hero Award from the American Cancer Society in 2018 for his efforts to combat virally induced cancer.

Lena Allweiss: Dr. Allweiss is a research fellow at the gastroenterology department of the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf. Her research focuses on chronic hepatitis B and D, particularly investigating the molecular mechanisms of chronic hepatitis B infection. Her team uses humanized liver mice and patient samples to study the viral minichromosome, cccDNA, and its interaction with the host and antiviral treatments. She is a member of the International Coalition to Eliminate HBV (ICE-HBV) and the German Center for Infection Research (HBV Cure Project).

Matteo Iannacone: Dr. Iannacone obtained his M.D. and Ph.D. in Immunology from Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy. He is currently the Director of the Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases at the San Raffaele Scientific Institute and University in Milan, Italy. He is an expert in in vivo imaging techniques and advanced animal models, focusing on immune responses and viral-induced immunopathology. He has received numerous prestigious awards and holds 14 international patents. He has published over 100 papers and is an elected member of the Henry Kunkel Society and EMBO.

Julie Lucifora: Dr. Lucifora studied molecular and cellular biology at the Ecole Normale Supérieure of Lyon (France) and obtained her Ph.D. from the University of Lyon. She is a board member of the hepatitis fundamental research section of the ANRS-MIE and of the emerging Scholars Scientific and Medical Advisory Board (eSAMB) of the Hepatitis B Foundation. Her research focuses on the interplay between hepatotropic viruses and the liver microenvironment, and she has published over 50 articles. She was awarded the Young Investigator Award from the European Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (EASL) in 2014 and the Gilead Sciences International Research Scholars Program in Liver Disease Award in 2015.

Florian Lempp: Dr. Lempp obtained his Ph.D. in Virology from the University of Heidelberg, Germany. He was involved in the preclinical development of the first-in-class HBV/HDV entry inhibitor, bulevirtide, which is now marketed as Hepcludex. He joined Vir in 2018 as a Scientist, overseeing preclinical and nonclinical work for HBV/HDV, SARS-CoV-2, and RSV/MPV projects. He is currently the head of Research-Virology at Vir, overseeing various viral therapeutic research efforts.

Oliver Lenz: Dr. Lenz is Senior Scientific Director of Clinical Microbiology and Immunology at Janssen Infectious Diseases, part of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson. He is the global virology lead for HBV therapeutics, guiding projects from preclinical through clinical development. Before his work in HBV, he was involved in the discovery of the HCV protease inhibitor simeprevir. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Marburg, Germany, and has authored more than 80 peer-reviewed manuscripts.

Shay Salehi: Dr. Salehi obtained his MD from Warwick Medical School in the United Kingdom. After completing his specialty training in Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology, and Hepatology in London and South East England, he moved to the pharmaceutical industry in 2019. He joined GSK in 2022 as the Global Medical Affairs Director for pipeline assets in chronic hepatitis B virus infection.