Mercedes Segura Gally is a senior biotechnology executive with over two decades of experience in advanced therapeutic modalities. She has led programs across all phases of product development, from preclinical through commercial, and has managed scientific organizations at leading advanced therapy medicinal companies in the Boston area. Mercedes earned her Pharmacy degree and MSc in Biotechnology from the Universidad de Buenos Aires and completed her PhD in Chemical Engineering at l’Université Laval, conducting research at the National Research Council of Canada. She later pursued postdoctoral studies at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Her industry career includes leadership roles at bluebirdbio, where she contributed to the development and approval of pioneering cell and gene therapies such as Zynteglo®, Skysona®, Abecma®, and Lyfgenia®, as well as senior positions at AVROBIO and ElevateBio. She currently serves as Vice President of Process Development at Editas Medicine, leading the development of next-generation in vivo gene-editing medicines.

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Keynote Details

Monday 29 June

Symposium 5: Cell and gene therapies

A Walk Through the Evolution of Genetic Medicines

Genetic medicines have advanced through waves of innovation, shaped by scientific breakthroughs, clinical needs, and the realities of manufacturing and delivery technologies of the time. Initial approaches relied on viral vectors derived from natural viruses or ex vivo autologous cell therapies to validate gene modification as a viable approach for treating or correcting disease. Early successes such as AAV-based therapies for monogenic disease correction and CAR-T cell therapies for hematologic cancer treatment revealed the clinical potential of genetic medicines but also exposed safety and scalability challenges that continue to limit broad patient access. As gene-editing technologies and delivery systems have matured, momentum is shifting toward more scalable solutions such as in vivo genetic medicines and allogeneic cell therapies. The global deployment of mRNA vaccines accelerated acceptance of lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) as delivery vehicles. Today, LNPs have emerged as versatile delivery systems for genetic medicines, expanding the delivery toolbox. This talk explores how genetic medicines have evolved alongside scientific advances and why adaptable, flexible strategies for manufacturing and delivery will be critical to unlocking the next generation of therapies and improving patient access.