Mark Esser | Chief Scientific Officer and Head
Paul and Diane Manning Institute of Biotechnology, University of Virginia

Mark T. Esser, Ph.D. Chief Scientific Officer and Head of the UVA Manning Institute of Biotechnology University of Virginia Dr. Esser joined the University of Virginia in May of 2025 as the inaugural Chief Scientific Officer and Head of the Manning Institute. Mark is responsible for the overall strategic direction and operations of the Manning Institute bringing early science from concept to the clinic. Prior to joining UVA, Mark was the Vice President of R&D in the Vaccines & Immune Therapies division at AstraZeneca. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Mark led AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 monoclonal antibody (Evusheld™) program to a successful Emergency Use Authorization and supported R&D efforts for the authorization of the COVID-19 vaccine, Vaxzevria™. He also played a key role in the development and FDA approval of the RSV antibody Beyfortus™. Prior to joining AstraZeneca, he was the director of the Vaccine and Biologics Center of Excellence at Pharmaceutical Product Development (PPD) and prior to PPD he was at Merck Vaccines where he held positions of increasing responsibility and was instrumental in the approval of GARDASIL® for the prevention of cervical cancer. He is widely recognized for his contributions to vaccine and immunology research with numerous patents and over 130 peer-reviewed publications. Dr. Esser received his B.S. in biochemistry from Case Western Reserve University, his doctorate in microbiology and immunology from University of Virginia and did his postdoctoral fellowship at the AIDS vaccine program at the National Institutes of Health. Contact Information: Mark T. Esser, Ph.D. Chief Scientific Officer & Head of the Paul and Diane Manning Institute of Biotechnology Thomas A. Saunders III Family Jefferson Scholars Professor Email: Mark.Esser@Virginia.edu Tele: 240-599-6699 Web: Paul and Diane Manning Institute of Biotechnology

Appearances:

Pre-Congress Workshops - Monday 30th March @ 10:00

ANTIBODIES FOR INFECTIOUS DISEASES WORKSHOP

10am Workshop Chair’s Opening Remarks: Dr Mark T. Esser, Chief Scientific Officer & Head, Paul and Diane Manning Institute of Biotechnology

Topics

Development of mAbs for infectious diseases
mAb design
Reducing the cost of mAb manufacturing

MEASURING BREADTH & EMERGING TARGETS

10:10am A Long Acting Monoclonal Antibody for Seasonal Prevention of Lyme DiseaseDr Mark Klempner, Professor of Medicine & Principal Investigator, University of Massachusetts

10:40am Multiplexed Neutralization Assays: A Unified Platform for Evaluating Breadth Against Priority PathogensDr Nigel Temperton, Chair in Molecular Virology, Director of Research and Innovation, Medway School of Pharmacy, University of Kent

11:00am Developing mAb therapies that keep pace with rapidly evolving viral threatsDr Robert Allen, CSO, Invivyd

TRANSFORMING DELIVERY & CLINICAL ACCESS

11:20 Breaking the Cycle: A Novel Anti-Toxin B Antibody Against Recurrent C. difficile InfectionsDr Christine Tkaczyk, Director, Bacteriology early Vaccines & Immune Therapies, AstraZeneca

11:50am Novel DNA-Encoded Monoclonal Antibody Technology: Durable and Tolerable In Vivo Expression of mAbs Targeting COVID Dr Laurent Humeau, CSO, Inovio

12:10am The Sepsis Antibody Breakthrough: restoring immune function with hCitH3-mAb Dr Jianjie Ma, Professor, Surgery, University of Virginia

12:30pm From Bench to Broad Access: The journey of Nirsevimab, a long-acting mAb against RSVDr Sachin Paranjapi, Sanofi *TBC

1pm NETWORKING BREAK

ANTIBODIES FOR INFECTIOUS DISEASES (PM)

2:00pm Panel: Next-Gen mAbs for Infectious Diseases: Accelerating from Lab to Global Access
Microbial vs. Mammalian: New platforms for anti-infectives.
The CMC Bridge: Moving from discovery to clinical-grade manufacturing.
Clinical Delivery: Long-acting formulations and the shift to subcutaneous dosing.
Equity & Economics: Practical pathways to the $10/g goal for global access.Moderator: Dr Michael Caldwell, Assoc VP Vaccine Research & Education, Meharry Medical CollegeDr Antonio DiGiandomenico, Senior Director, Head of Microbial Antibodies and Technologies, Early Vaccines and Immune Therapies, AstraZenecaDr Huub Gelderblom, Director, Strategic Partnerships, HVTN, Fred Hutch Dr Richard Welch, VP BioProcess Development & Manufacturing, IAVI

THE MULTI-SPECIFIC FRONTIER

3:00pm Beyond Monoclonals: Harnessing Recombinant Polyclonals to Future-Proof Against Viral EscapeDr Sheila Keating, Vice President, Immunology, GigaGen

3:20 – 3:40pm Development of unique tetravalent antibodies for COVID and Flu Dr John Mascola, CSO, Modex Therapeutics

3:40pm Next-Generation HIV mAbs: Optimizing Potency, Duration, and Global AccessDr Jon Heinrichs, Vice President & Head of Discovery Science, IAVI

4:00pm Multi-specific Antibodies and Cocktails: The Future of Complex ID Intervention
The technical hurdles of discovering, engineering, co-manufacturing and co-formulating multiple mAbs or multi-specific formats.
Designing mAbs that target multiple mechanisms (e.g., neutralizing toxin and facilitating pathogen clearance).
Clinical trial design challenges for combination products in infectious disease settings.
Regulatory challenges

Moderator: Dr Huub Glederblom, Fred HutchDr John Mascola, CSO, Modex TherapeuticsDr Sheila Keating, Vice President, Immunology, GigaGenDr Peter Marks, Head of Infectious Diseases, Eli Lilly

5pm End of Workshop