The two-day conference “Gene and Cell Therapy: Where do we stand and where do we want to go?” took place on May 18 and 19 in Frankfurt am Main. It was organized by ForTra gGmbH für Forschungstransfer der Else Kröner-Fresenius- Stiftung (ForTra) in collaboration with SPARK-BIH, the project funding program of the Berlin Institute of Health at Charité (BIH), as part of the National Strategy for Gene and Cell-Based Therapies.
Leading international experts from academia, clinical practice, and industry gathered to present current breakthroughs and discuss how innovative therapies can reach patients more quickly.
Among the internationally renowned researchers who have significantly shaped the development of modern gene and cell therapies are Prof. Dr. Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte (Institute of Science, Altos Labs, San Diego), Prof. Dr. Carl June (Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania), and Prof. Dr. Alessandro Aiuti (San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy, Milan). In their keynote speeches, they provided insights into the latest developments in their research.
Prof. Izpisua Belmonte presented new approaches to cell reprogramming aimed at restoring cells to a younger, regenerative state in order to develop new therapeutic strategies for age-related diseases. Prof. June reported on advances in genetically modified immune cells for cancer treatment and the potential of so-called “off-the-shelf” cell therapies, which are produced in a standardized manner and could also be used against solid cancer tumors in the future. Prof. Aiuti used already approved treatments to demonstrate how gene therapies for rare genetic diseases have successfully made their way into clinical application.
In addition to the keynote presentations, participants discussed key challenges in biomedical translation – that is, the transfer of scientific findings from the laboratory into new therapies, products, or procedures. Topics included regulatory requirements and challenges for clinical trials, the manufacture of gene and cell therapeutics under GMP quality standards as well as potential financing models for transforming an academic GCT project into a spin-off, particularly in the field of gene and cell therapy. Another focus was on new therapeutic approaches from academic research, which are currently being funded by ForTra and the SPARK-BIH program as part of the National Strategy GCT. Among other things, forward-looking gene therapy projects aimed at restoring hearing and treating rare diseases were presented.
The press release dated 20 May 2026 is available here.