Boston and New YorkBoston and NY

Engineering Bacteria for Next-Gen Therapeutics

Bacteria have evolved some of nature's most sophisticated molecular machinery, including ways to inject molecules into other cells with pinpoint accuracy. Join us to explore how these natural systems could unlock the next generation of targeted therapeutics.

Over billions of years, bacteria have evolved a diverse arsenal of secretion systems, which they use to transfer proteins and other molecules to their surroundings and neighboring cells. Scientists have identified at least eleven distinct types, each with its own architecture and strategy. As antibiotic resistance outpaces the development of new drugs, these natural delivery systems offer a blueprint for new therapies. One especially promising example is the Type VI Secretion System (T6SS), studied by Marek Basler at the University of Basel, which can deliver molecules directly into neighboring cells with remarkable precision. Its accuracy and efficiency raise a compelling question: could systems like these be re-engineered to deliver therapeutics in entirely new ways?

This event convenes experts at the forefront of synthetic biology, bioengineering, and drug discovery to explore that question. The panel will feature Marek Basler, Professor of Infection Biology the University of Basel’s Biozentrum, whose lab studies the structure and function of the T6SS at the nanoscale. He will be joined by Tetsuhiro Harimoto, a postdoctoral fellow at the Mooney Lab at Harvard and incoming assistant professor at Cornell University whose research develops engineered living materials as next-generation drug delivery systems, and Annette Bak, who leads Advanced Drug Delivery at AstraZeneca and brings an industry perspective on what it takes to translate early-stage discoveries into viable medicines. Together, they will discuss the opportunities and challenges of harnessing bacterial delivery systems for medicine.

Program

  • 5:30pm – Doors open
  • 6:00pm – Welcome remarks: Philippe Roesle, CEO, Swissnex in Boston and New York
  • 6:05pm – Presentation & Panel Discussion
  • 6:50pm – Audience Q&A
  • 7:00pm – Networking
  • 8:30pm – End
Add to Google calendar
iCal / Outlook

Event start time

  • Boston

    5:30PM

Speaker

  •

    Bio

    Marek Basler

    Professor of Infection Biology
    Biozentrum, University of Basel

    Marek Basler is Professor of Infection Biology at the Biozentrum, University of Basel. Originally from the Czech Republic, he earned his Ph.D. at the Institute of Microbiology of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague before joining John Mekalanos’s lab at Harvard Medical School as a postdoctoral fellow. There he made the key discovery that bacteria use the Type VI secretion system (T6SS), a tiny contractile injection apparatus, which can deliver molecules directly into neighboring cells with remarkable precision. Since establishing his own group in Basel in 2013, his lab studies how bacteria assemble and fire this system to interact with their neighbors. His work has been recognized with the EMBO Gold Medal, an ERC Consolidator Grant, and election to EMBO membership.

  •

    Bio

    Annette Bak

    Head of Advanced Drug Delivery
    AstraZeneca

    Annette Bak, Ph.D., MBA, leads New Modalities Product Discovery and Development (NPDD) at AstraZeneca and serves on the Pharmaceutical Sciences Leadership Team. NPDD is a global organization with employees in Sweden, the UK, and the US, where Annette is based. The organization aims to transform diverse modalities into investigational medicines.

    Since joining AstraZeneca in 2016, Annette has delivered multiple synthetic modalities and mRNA drug delivery systems for preclinical and clinical studies. She has also established capabilities in delivery chemistry and intracellular drug delivery, as well as a search and evaluation group.

    Prior to AstraZeneca, Annette held roles at Amgen and Merck in the US, focusing on small molecule and peptide formulations, outsourcing partnerships in China, and in-licensing and partnership evaluations. She contributed to the development and commercialization of several small molecule therapies.

    Annette has authored more than 60 scientific publications, delivered over 70 invited presentations, and serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Molecular Pharmaceutics. She is an inventor on multiple patents related to pharmaceutical technologies.

    A long-time volunteer with the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS), Annette served as the 2022 President, leading implementation of the organization’s 2021–2025 strategic plan. In 2020, she was co-recipient of the AAPS Alice E. Till Women in Pharmaceutical Science Recognition Award.

  •

    Bio

    Tetsuhiro Harimoto

    Assistant Professor
    Cornell University

    Tetsuhiro is an Assistant Professor in the Robert F. Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering starting in August 2026, and a Nancy E. and Peter C. Meinig Family Investigator in the Life Sciences. He completed Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering at Columbia University, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. His research focuses on developing engineered living materials as next-generation drug delivery systems. Tetsuhiro was recognized as one of STAT’s Wunderkinds and named to MIT Technology Review’s Innovators Under 35.

Partners

This event is presented in collaboration with the Canton of Basel-City and the University of Basel.