A new 90-second video animation was created by the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia’s CEO Council for Growth and its partners in the Cell & Gene Therapy Initiative to boost awareness of the Philadelphia region as a hub for cell and gene therapy.
Called “Greater Philadelphia: Discovery Starts Here,” the animation begins by highlighting how the region as home to the first FDA-approved gene therapy, Spark Therapeutics retinal disorder treatment Luxturna, and first FDA-approved cell therapy, Kymriah, which was developed by Penn researchers and licensed to Novartis. It then goes on to illustrate how more than a dozen companies have spun out of, or are licensing technology from, local research institutions.
The video animation features five research institutions, The University of Pennsylvania, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Jefferson Health, Temple University, and The Wistar Institute. It then shows the 15 cell and gene therapy startups that have spun out of these institutions, including Cabaletta Bio, Passage Bio, Verismo Therapeutics and Carisma Therapeutics.
The animation will be the latest addition to the materials the initiative already uses to promote the Philadelphia region to cell and gene therapy companies thinking about locating here, investors, real estate developers and others.
“This family tree animation is a way to illustrate our region’s assets and show the connections and the kind of collaborations that are happening in our community,” said Claire Marrazzo Greenwood, executive director and senior vice president of economic competitiveness for the CEO Council for Growth. “The animation is a way to show the deep kind of bench we have. We have 25 years of history in this science here. There is now evidence of that science becoming commercially viable and possible, and in the voluminous list of capital providers that are actually putting dollars and investments into this marketplace.”
To learn more about the animation and view it, go to the official post in the Philadelphia Business Journal.
