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Tillman Gerngross

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Tillman Gerngross
Born (1963-11-15) November 15, 1963 (age 60)
Known forFounder of multiple biotech companies
Academic background
Alma materTechnical University of Vienna
Academic advisorsArnold Demain, Anthony Sinskey, JoAnne Stubbe
Academic work
DisciplineBioprocess Engineering
InstitutionsDartmouth College

Tillman Gerngross (born November 15, 1963) is an Austro-American scientist.

He is a professor of bioengineering at the Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College, and an adjunct professor in the departments of biology and chemistry at Dartmouth. Gerngross has been an active inventor and to date his work has resulted in the founding of multiple companies (GlycoFi, Inc., Adimab LLC, Arsanis, Inc., Alector [Nasdaq:ALEC], Avitide, Inc., Amagma, Inc., Ankyra, and Adagio [Nasdaq:ADGI])[1][2] and over a dozen U.S. and international patents.[3][4]

Gerngross was elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering in 2017.

Academic background

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Gerngross received a M.S. (Dipl. Ing.) in chemical engineering (1989) and later a Ph.D.[5] in molecular biology from the Technical University of Vienna, Austria. Following his studies in Austria he became a visiting scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the laboratory of the late Arnold Demain (1989–91) and later joined the laboratory of Anthony Sinskey and JoAnne Stubbe at MIT as a postdoctoral associate from 1991 to 1993. From 1993 till 1998 he headed the fermentation and process development group at Metabolix Inc., a small startup company in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

In 1998 he left industry to join the faculty at Dartmouth where he focused his research on protein engineering, glycoprotein engineering in yeast, and life cycle analysis of competing manufacturing technologies. In addition to this work, Gerngross’ lab also developed a novel protein expression system based on the industrial fermentation organisms Ralstonia eutropha, formerly Alcaligenes eutrophus. With certain model proteins, this expression system has shown to outperform E. coli, the well proven workhorse of prokaryotic protein expression.[6][7] The work on Ralstonia eutropha was later expanded in collaboration with Prof. Wood at Princeton University to combine recombinant expression of proteins with the ability to purify them in vivo.[8][9]

In the late 1990s Gerngross became one of the first vocal critics of biobased processes. By using life cycle assessment tools he demonstrated the shortcomings of bioplastics and similar biomass based technologies intended as a substitute for the petrochemical processes used today. His main findings showed that changing from petrochemical to biomass-based processes often worsens their environmental impact and increases the emissions of carbon dioxide when compared to conventional processes based on fossil fuel stocks. With the recent mandate to increase biofuel content in the United States this area of research has become increasingly important, but to date has failed to guide public policy in the United States.[10]

Arguably, Gerngross' most important biotechnological contribution consisted of humanizing the glycosylation machinery in yeast to produce human therapeutic proteins, including antibodies, with fully human carbohydrate structures.[11] Much of this work was conducted at Glycofi, Inc., a Lebanon, New Hampshire biotechnology startup company that was acquired in 2006 by Merck in a record-setting $400 million transaction.[12]

His work has been frequently cited in the popular press including The Times (London), CNN, Scientific American,[13] BBC,[14] The Guardian,[15] The Economist, New Scientist,[16] Nature Biotechnology[17] and the Los Angeles Times.[18] He has most recently been covered by the Boston Globe,[19][20] CNBC,[21] First Rounders,[22] Evaluate Pharma,[23] STAT[24] and numerous others.

Entrepreneurial Activities

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In 2000 Gerngross co-founded Glycofi, Inc.[25] and served as the company's Chief Scientific Officer until its acquisition by Merck & Co. in the spring of 2006. In the fall of 2006 Dr. Gerngross joined SV Life Sciences as a venture partner[26] where he advises on investments in the bio-therapeutics area. SV Life Sciences manages five investment funds with an aggregate capital of about $1.6 billion. In 2007 Dr. Gerngross co-founded Adimab LLC.[1] with Prof. Dane Wittrup[27] at MIT[28] and Errik Anderson[29] to develop a novel platform for the discovery of human antibodies in yeast. Gerngross stepped down from heading Adimab in February 2023, and was replaced by lawyer Philip Chase.[30] To date the company has raised five rounds of venture financing from Polaris Ventures, SV Life Sciences,[31] Google Ventures, OrbiMed Advisors,[32] and Borealis Ventures[33][34][35] and employs about 70 people in Lebanon, New Hampshire.

In 2020, Gerngross cofounded Adagio as a spinout of Adimab which was developing a treatment for COVID-19. In Feb. 2022, Tillman Gerngross resigned as head of the company amid concerns about the efficacy of the drug.[36] The company changed its name to Invivyd and broadened its focus in September 2022.[37] There is currently a pending case of fraud against Tillman related to Adagio in Massachusetts, filed January 2023.[38] In January 2022, Gerngross introduced a new company, Amagma, which also focused on developing antibodies. Amagma was folded in 2023, and the status of its assets are unknown.[39]

Awards and recognition

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2004: GlycoFi is awarded Scientific American’s Top 50 Award for the most innovative manufacturing technology.[40]

2006: The readers of Nature Biotechnology select Gerngross amongst the most remarkable and influential biotechnology personalities of the decade.[41]

2007: Gerngross and Glycofi co-founder Charles Hutchinson are named New Hampshire Entrepreneurs of the Year to honor their success with GlycoFi.[42]

2017: Gerngross received the Contrarian Award from Xconomy in 2017.[43]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Home - Adimab".
  2. ^ Engineering, Thayer School of. "Tillman U. Gerngross | Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth". engineering.dartmouth.edu. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
  3. ^ "Patent Database Search Results: IN/"gerngross tillman" in US Patent Collection".
  4. ^ "WIPO Search".
  5. ^ "AIChE". Archived from the original on 2008-10-21. Retrieved 2008-08-27.
  6. ^ Srinivasan S, Barnard GC, Gerngross TU (December 2002). "A novel high-cell-density protein expression system based on Ralstonia eutropha". Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 68 (12): 5925–32. Bibcode:2002ApEnM..68.5925S. doi:10.1128/AEM.68.12.5925-5932.2002. PMC 134445. PMID 12450812.
  7. ^ Barnard GC, Henderson GE, Srinivasan S, Gerngross TU (December 2004). "High level recombinant protein expression in Ralstonia eutropha using T7 RNA polymerase based amplification". Protein Expr. Purif. 38 (2): 264–71. doi:10.1016/j.pep.2004.09.001. PMID 15555942.
  8. ^ Barnard GC, McCool JD, Wood DW, Gerngross TU (October 2005). "Integrated recombinant protein expression and purification platform based on Ralstonia eutropha". Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 71 (10): 5735–42. Bibcode:2005ApEnM..71.5735B. doi:10.1128/AEM.71.10.5735-5742.2005. PMC 1265954. PMID 16204482.
  9. ^ Banki MR, Gerngross TU, Wood DW (June 2005). "Novel and economical purification of recombinant proteins: intein-mediated protein purification using in vivo polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) matrix association". Protein Sci. 14 (6): 1387–95. doi:10.1110/ps.041296305. PMC 2253394. PMID 15883185.
  10. ^ Searchinger T, Heimlich R, Houghton RA, et al. (February 2008). "Use of U.S. croplands for biofuels increases greenhouse gases through emissions from land-use change". Science. 319 (5867): 1238–40. Bibcode:2008Sci...319.1238S. doi:10.1126/science.1151861. PMID 18258860. S2CID 52810681.
  11. ^ Hamilton SR, Davidson RC, Sethuraman N, et al. (September 2006). "Humanization of yeast to produce complex terminally sialylated glycoproteins". Science. 313 (5792): 1441–3. Bibcode:2006Sci...313.1441H. doi:10.1126/science.1130256. PMID 16960007. S2CID 43334198.
  12. ^ Heuser, Stephen (2006-05-10). "Merck to buy N.H. biotech in record bid". The Boston Globe.
  13. ^ Laura, DeFrancesco. "Preparing for the Next Plague". Scientific American. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  14. ^ "Yeast turned into drugs factory". BBC News. 2003-08-29. Retrieved 2010-05-25.
  15. ^ Radford, Tim (2003-08-29). "Researchers tweak yeast DNA to produce human protein". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2010-05-25.
  16. ^ Vince, Gaia. "Modified yeast produces fully human proteins".
  17. ^ Dove A (May 2000). "Experts disagree over color of biomass". Nat. Biotechnol. 18 (5): 490. doi:10.1038/75341. PMID 10802610.
  18. ^ Simon, Stephanie (2005-06-26). "To Replace Oil, U.S. Experts See Amber Waves of Plastic". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-05-25.
  19. ^ Gardizy, Anissa. "CEO Gerngross resigns from Waltham biotech working on COVID-19 antibody treatment". Boston Globe Today. Boston Globe. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  20. ^ Garde, Damian (June 19, 2023). "Muzzled for years, vindicated MIT professor says fraud investigation into his lab did lasting damage". Boston Globe. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  21. ^ Tirrell, Meg. "Adagio Therapeutics CEO: We see a role in the treatment of Covid, as well as prevention". CNBC. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  22. ^ Huggett, Brady. "Tillman Gerngross". Acast. First Rounders. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  23. ^ Plieth, Jacob (23 February 2022). "No fast way to Covid glory for Adagio". Evaluate Vantage. Evaluate Pharma. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  24. ^ Garde, Damian (23 May 2019). "At MIT, a bitter dispute over research puts a scientist's prestige on the line". STAT. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  25. ^ http://www.glycofi.com Archived 2008-05-31 at the Wayback Machine
  26. ^ "Tilman Gerngross". www.svlsa.com. Archived from the original on 12 May 2007. Retrieved 6 June 2022.
  27. ^ "The Wittrup Lab". 27 June 2019.
  28. ^ "Corporate Overview | Adimab". www.adimab.com. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
  29. ^ "Errik B. Anderson: Executive Profile & Biography - Businessweek". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
  30. ^ Waldron, James. "Adimab swaps scientist for lawyer as CEO Tillman Gerngross steps down after 15 years". Fierce Biotech. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  31. ^ "SV Life Sciences".
  32. ^ "OrbiMed".
  33. ^ "SV and Polaris Back Gerngross' New Antibody Play - Start-Up". sis.windhover.com. Archived from the original on 18 July 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2022.
  34. ^ "Adimab Scores Second Funding Round in Less Than A Year". 25 March 2008.
  35. ^ "Adimab Grows Up, Looks to Pay Off the VCs In Unusual Way - Xconomy". 22 February 2013.
  36. ^ Pagliarulo, Ned. "Adagio pledges to press forward with COVID drug as CEO to resign". Biopharma Drive. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  37. ^ Adams, Ben. "Adagio goes for name rebrand as it tries to shake off bad run with COVID hopeful". Fierce Pharma. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  38. ^ "Brill v. Invivyd, Inc et al". Justia Dockets & Filings. Justia. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  39. ^ LaHucik, Kyle. "Tillman Gerngross' Amagma Therapeutics quietly ships antibodies to another biotech". Endpoints News. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  40. ^ "The 2004 Scientific American 50 Award: Business Leaders". sciam.com. Scientific American. November 11, 2004. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
  41. ^ Jayaraman, K. S.; Louët, Sabine; Powell, Kendall; Ransom, John; Sheridan, Cormac; Vastag, Brian; Waltz, Emily (1 March 2006). "Who's who in biotech". Nat Biotechnol. 24 (3): 291–300. doi:10.1038/nbt0306-291. PMC 7097553. PMID 16525392.
  42. ^ "Engineering profs chosen as NH "Entrepreneurs of the Year"". Archived from the original on 2008-07-25. Retrieved 2008-08-16.
  43. ^ "The Winners of the 2017 Xconomy Awards Are… | Xconomy". Xconomy. 2017-09-26. Retrieved 2017-09-28.

Additional references

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  1. Gerngross T, Slater S (February 2003). "Biopolymers and the environment". Science. 299 (5608): 822–5, author reply 822–5. doi:10.1126/science.299.5608.822. PMID 12574603. S2CID 41354773.
  2. Gerngross TU (June 1999). "Can biotechnology move us toward a sustainable society?". Nat. Biotechnol. 17 (6): 541–4. doi:10.1038/9843. PMID 10385316. S2CID 36258380.
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