{"id":19798,"date":"2025-06-03T15:17:54","date_gmt":"2025-06-03T15:17:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mpower.maryland.edu\/?p=19798"},"modified":"2025-06-03T15:53:43","modified_gmt":"2025-06-03T15:53:43","slug":"presidents-entrepreneurial-fellows-share-insights-celebrate-10th-anniversary-of-the-program","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mpower.maryland.edu\/presidents-entrepreneurial-fellows-share-insights-celebrate-10th-anniversary-of-the-program\/","title":{"rendered":"President\u2019s Entrepreneurial Fellows Share Insights, Celebrate 10th Anniversary of the Program"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Pictured: The 2024-2025 President’s Entrepreneurial Fellows (PEF) cohort with University of Maryland, Baltimore President Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS.<\/sub><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Published in The Elm<\/a><\/strong> | May 28, 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The fellows worked on five projects for Otter Immuno-Oncology, a seed-stage, preclinical biopharmaceutical company developing potential oncology therapies in areas of high unmet need.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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At the beginning of May, the 2024-25 President’s Entrepreneurial Fellows (PEF) cohort<\/strong><\/a> presented findings from their projects to an audience of their mentors, faculty, staff, students, and executives affiliated with the biotech ecosystem in Maryland. The 2024-25 cohort marked the 10th anniversary of the PEF program, which encourages innovation and discovery<\/strong><\/a>, peeling back the curtain on biotech entrepreneurism and giving students an up-close look at working in biotech startup companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Welcoming everyone to the presentations, Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS, president of UMB, shared his pride for the PEF program, highlighting it as an example of UMB\u2019s core values<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWith the PEF program, you see students, you see mentors standing up for students and making sure they’re getting a good education and an opportunity to be entrepreneurs. And it gave me a certain sense of pride. \u2026 Our core values are sitting in this room: They are about discovery and innovation and a whole lot of other things. One of the reasons why I take pride in is because it really is what this University stands for.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Giving advice to the fellows, Jarrell said, \u201cDon\u2019t give up. Make sure that you carry it over the goal line.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year, all of the PEF projects supported Otter Immuno-Oncology, a seed-stage, preclinical, immunology-focused biopharmaceutical company developing therapies with curative potential in areas of high unmet need in oncology. Otter was co-founded and is led by Darryl Carter, MD, a venture advisor for UMB<\/strong><\/a> and one of the PEF program leaders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The PEFs pursued five projects, each focused on a different aspect of advancing Otter\u2019s lead candidate, CD229, a novel marker of plasma cells that is intended for use in CAR-T cancer therapy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Intellectual property issues in CAR-T cells<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Examined the key legal requirements for the patentability of CAR-T cell therapy inventions. The analysis included a pivotal court case that addressed the validity of patents covering antigen receptors used in T cell therapy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CD229 CAR-T cells for autoimmune diseases as follow-on indications<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looked into autoimmune diseases, where plasma cells play a key role in the pathogenesis, as another potential indication for CD229. IgA nephropathy, a leading cause of renal failure with a high economic burden for patients, was identified as a promising candidate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

De-centralized CAR-T cell manufacturing<\/strong>

Explored current CAR-T manufacturing method and identified opportunities for innovation. By pursuing a de-centralized model, it was found that Otter could dramatically decrease the cost of CAR-T therapy while increasing manufacturing efficiency and expediting delivery to patients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Toxicity considerations for CAR-T cell therapies<\/strong>

Emphasized the need to evaluate any potential toxicity of CD229 cells for CAR-T therapy as a critical step for a U.S. Food and Drug Administration investigational new drug application. It was found that the CD229 cells have on-target toxicity and do not have off-target toxicity for normal human proteins. Additionally, findings highlighted the importance of implementing tests to predict CAR-T cell\u2013associated neurotoxicity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Global access to CAR-T cells<\/strong>

Looked at expanding access to CAR-T therapy in middle-income countries, specifically India and Brazil. The recommendation for Otter was to use a phased-entry model that begins with a private-sector pilot before moving to a regulatory and local trial setup. After those two phases, Otter could establish partnerships for local manufacturing to support public access.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cohort of 11<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 2024-25 PEF cohort<\/strong><\/a>, the largest to date, included 11 students representing three of UMB\u2019s seven schools as well as the University of Maryland Robert H. Smith School of Business:<\/p>\n\n\n\n