The award commends Mogrify® in applying its proprietary direct cellular conversion technology to further the cause of life science discovery for the benefit of human healthcare. Professor Julian Gough, Co-founder and CSO of Mogrify (pictured), received the Cambridge Enterprise Academic Entrepreneur of the Year award in recognition of his work as a life science innovator and founder of Mogrify.
Mogrify’s proprietary direct cellular conversion technology determines the conversion factors required to convert (ex vivo or in vivo) any target cell type from any source cell type. The Company is deploying this platform to engineer an evergreen and scalable source of cell types that exhibit efficacy and safety profiles necessary to address diseases with a high unmet clinical need, such as in ophthalmological, immunological, hematological, and other disease areas.
Professor Gough is a leading bioinformatician and biotech entrepreneur who led the development and application of the Mogrify platform, which utilizes a systematic big-data approach (Rackham et al., Nature Genetics, 2016) developed over a 10-year period via a multi-national research collaboration. Graduating with a PhD in molecular biology from the University of Cambridge, Julian became Professor of Bioinformatics at the University of Bristol and is now Programme Leader at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge. He has also successfully started a number of biotech companies.
Dr Darrin M Disley, OBE, CEO, Mogrify, said: “Our team are committed to transforming healthcare for indications of high unmet clinical need. The award for Life Science Innovation attests to the potential of Mogrify’s platform and pioneering team to overcome safety, efficacy and scalability challenges for cell therapies and we are honored to have this recognized by the judges at this year’s esteemed business awards.
"Julian is an outstanding scientist and entrepreneur who has worked tirelessly to advance Mogrify technology and drive its therapeutic application forward, paving the way for future treatments and inspiring those who work alongside him.”
Professor Julian Gough, Co-founder and CSO, Mogrify, said: “Following on from our previous success in the ‘Disruptive Technology’ category at last year’s Business Weekly Awards, I am delighted to see Mogrify go from strength to strength and achieve success again in 2020.
"I am immensely proud to have been named ‘Academic Entrepreneur of the Year’ and would like to thank my peers who have supported me throughout my career and Mogrify’s talented team for their dedication and hard work in pioneering novel cell therapies.”
Since February 2019, Mogrify has raised over $20 million USD in seed and series A rounds and $2.5 million USD in grant funding, and has grown to a headcount over 60 of scientific, operational, and commercial staff.