Allison Drain

My role transitioned to preclinical development for the AFNT-212 program for which I had previously led the discovery effort. Together with the preclinical team, we developed a strategy for the AFNT-212 IND-enabling nonclinical activities. I coordinated the in vitro and in vivo pharmacology and toxicology IND-enabling laboratory work and executed experiments together with my team. I authored several IND technical reports and contributed to writing and reviewing Module 2 summaries. Much of this work was cross-functional, working together with CMC colleagues to coordinate material availability, in-process sample collection, and documentation. Following the completion of the IND nonclinical data package and associated regulatory documents, I assisted team members in early discovery designing novel potency enhancing proteins and managing the internal screening of these constructs. In addition I led internal TCR discovery campaigns with a separate team, successfully identifying antigen-specific TCRs for challenging targets. I also assisted team members in early discovery by evaluating the activity and specificity of bispecific T cell engagers that utilize soluble TCRs for antigen recognition. As a proven contributor within the discovery team, I also led regular side project requests from company leadership based on external interactions as bandwidth allowed.

I led a discovery team of 5 scientists to nominate a clinical candidate for AFNT-212, a TCR-T program targeting the KRAS G12D mutation presented in the context of HLA-A*11:01. I was responsible for short and medium term timeline management, experiment planning, and training my team in wet lab work and data analysis. My team rigorously characterized and evaluated a portfolio of TCRs and identified novel armoring strategies to enhance anti-tumor activity and T cell persistence. In collaboration with the in vivo biology team, we validated our in vitro findings with robust in vivo data. During this time, my team also collaborated closely with Process Development colleagues to establish a non-viral knock-in manufacturing platform that overcame several limitations associated with viral vectors. Together these activities culminated in the selection of a clinical candidate for the AFNT-212 program.

I performed model development and assay development to establish widely adopted protocols and workflows for the evaluation of activity and safety of TCR-engineered T cell therapeutics. These included assessment of functional TCR avidity, anti-tumor activity, alanine and X-scan, and cytokine independent growth. It also included assay design to validate the mechanisms of various armoring strategies.

I optimized and applied mammalian synthetic biology tools to better understand targetable cell signaling pathways in disease and develop novel therapeutics. I engineered a SNIPR-based logic gated CAR-T therapy for liver fibrosis that restricted CAR expression to within liver tissue. I also optimized tunable small molecule-regulated gene circuits for CAR-T and CAR-NK cytokine secretion as part of a sponsored research agreement with an industry partner.  I also worked on developing organotypic in vitro models of human liver to better understand signaling pathways involved in the resolution of fibrosis, I developed a 3D in vitro culture model consisting of primary hepatic stellate cell lined ducts cultured alongside primary hepatocyte and endothelial cell organoids.  Joint between Mo Khalil's and Chris Chen's laboratories.

I completed my PhD in Valerie Weaver's laboratory at UCSF studying the role of tissue fibrosis in breast tumor progression and metastasis. My focus was on collagen crosslinking and extracellular matrix remodeing in breast tumor progression, the contribution of ECM stiffness to chemotherapy response, and the influence of extracellular matrix on immune cell populations in the primary tumor and the premetastatic niche.

Tutored high school students in chemistry, physics, and mathematics.

I designed testing protocols for internal product characterization and researched FDA guidelines to ensure product modifications complied with the appropriate safety standards. I also compiled product testing data into formal reports to show performance within design specifications.

I tutored small groups of freshmen students in an introductory chemical engineering course. I was responsible for grading homework, quizzes, and exams.

I engineered spatially patterned co-cultures of mesenchymal stem cells and breast cancer cells to understand the role these cell-cell interactions play in promoting tumor progression and drug resistance.

I developed a 3D cell culture system to investigate the effect of stromal PTEN loss on oncogene activation in mammary epithelial cells.

Graduated with Distinction and from the Honors Program