Matthias Von Herrath
Vice President of Translational Medicine & Immunology Eli Lilly & Co.
Seminars
Tuesday 23rd March 2027
Evaluating the Current Toolbox of Tolerance Biomarkers to Identify Preclinical & Clinical Markers for Mechanism of Action & Efficacy to Determine the Success of Tolerance Approaches
After 10 years, biomarkers of tolerance remain the field’s most persistent open question, and with several programs now advancing into later-stage trials, the pressure to resolve it is significantly higher. This session puts you in the room with the people wrestling with the same problem in their own program right now: to compare notes, stress test current approaches, and leave with sharper ideas to apply to your own biomarker strategy.
This session will:
- Examine why patient heterogeneity has made biomarkers so difficult to identify, to clarify why an unbiased broad search often loses signal in the noise, and understand why a more targeted approach may be needed
- Analyze candidate biomarkers already in use or under investigation, such as autoantibodies, cytokines, cell-free DNA, and TCR repertoire changes, to compare their relative strengths, limitations, and readiness
- Review how combining multiple biomarkers, and improving how quickly they can be read out, could strengthen confidence in a clinical endpoint to weigh this against the practical demands of trial timelines and investor expectations
Wednesday 24th March 2027
Panel Discussion: Evaluating What Big Pharma & Investors Want to See in Antigen-Specific Immune Tolerance to Understand the Evidence Needed to Unlock Partnership & Investment
1:30 pm
Review current levels of pharma and investor engagement with antigen-specific approaches to identify what would strengthen confidence in the space and positioning the field to attract deeper investment going forward.
- Understand what Big Pharma considers a commercially attractive indication and how they come to this decision to inform biotechs of what steps can support successful commercialization
- Discussing the type of data and evidence pharma and investors have indicated they want to see to clarify the gap between what is currently available and what may be expected, and explore how early-stage programs can prepare for this
- Considering how indication choice and commercial viability factor into investment decisions, to weigh biological rationale against practical, market-driven considerations, and inform how programs might frame their own value proposition
