Brian Kim, MBA, on the Emergence of CRISPR-Based Medicines and the Resurgence of AAV

This is the second part of an interview with Brian Kim, MBA. For the first part, click here.

“...[E]arlier on this year, there were maybe some premature announcements by the press about the decline of AAV, but we're seeing quite the opposite here. As such, I think the only way that you're going to be able to see these things is actually to be able to attend these conferences like ASGCT and to actually hear from what our customers are saying, as opposed to just believing what you read in popular press.”

Mission Bio's Tapestri platform is intended to provide a multiomic single cell sequencing solution for companies and institutions developing cell and gene therapy products. The company is currently working to build upon the features of its platform and foster collaborations to expand its reach, and gave presentations related to these topics at the American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy (ASGCT) 28th Annual Meeting, held May 13 to 17, 2024, in New Orleans, LA.

At the conference, CGTLive® spoke with Brian Kim, MBA, the chief executive officer of Mission Bio, about what he is paying attention to at the meeting this year and about the broader trends in the field. Kim drew attention to the growing interest in CRISPR-based medicines, specifically alluding to a story covered by major news outlets, including The New York Times. This story covered the case of KJ, an infant with severe carbamoyl phosphate synthetase 1 deficiency who was treated with a personalized CRISPR-based gene editing therapy by investigators at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia in the context of an n-of-1 trial. Kim indicated that this story demonstrates the growing prominence of CRISPR gene editing in the field of cell and gene therapy. Although, he also pointed out that adeno-associated virus (AAV) vector-based gene therapy approaches seem to be having a resurgence of interest, despite some news outlets predicting that this modality is on the decline. Kim emphasized that the on-the-ground experience at ASGCT this year shows a different story about where the field is compared to the mainstream press. Afterwards, he also touched on Mission Bio’s collaboration efforts and stated that the company continues to be open to new partnership opportunities.

Click here to view more coverage of the 2025 ASGCT Annual Meeting.

REFERENCES
1. World's first patient treated with personalized CRISPR gene editing therapy at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. News release. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. May 15, 2025. Accessed May 15, 2025.https://www.chop.edu/news/worlds-first-patient-treated-personalized-crispr-gene-editing-therapy-childrens-hospital