Associate Professor
Medical College of Wisconsin
Dr. David Wilcox, PhD is Associate Professor of Pediatric HEM/ONC/BMT at the Medical College of Wisconsin; Adjunct Investigator at Versiti BloodCenter; Blood Research Institute; and Investigator at the Children’s Research Institute of Children’s Wisconsin in Milwaukee. He is also President of Platelet Targeted Therapeutics, a company dedicated to developing and bringing unique platelet-targeted gene therapies to patients.
For two decades, Dr. Wilcox and his team have focused their efforts to develop strategies to genetically modify the function of platelets to improve treatment and possibly cure serious diseases. These efforts have led to significant advances in our current understanding of platelets, and of specific proteins and their role in addressing several genetic disorders. Additionally, Dr. Wilcox has been investigating the potential for utilizing Hematopoietic Stem Cells (HSC) as a target for gene therapy to synthesize therapeutic proteins within megakaryocytes, to correct disorders utilizing unique properties of platelets. As recipient of numerous grants and awards, both public and private, these efforts have led to three platforms for megakaryocyte-specific gene therapy, addressing diseases including Glanzmann’s Thrombasthenia, and Hemophilia A, as well as several types of cancer.
With the ever-expanding understanding of the complex function of platelets, Dr. Wilcox has specifically focused on developing novel strategies to genetically modify bone marrow to permit platelets to manufacture, store and deliver therapeutic proteins at the site of vascular injuries with the goal to permanently improve rare and common inherited bleeding disorders. Thus, Dr. Wilcox and his team remain committed to exploring new directions and opportunities, by continuing to translate their basic research studies into first-in-human clinical gene therapy trials, including the use of LV HSC expressing platelet-specific coagulation Factor VIII (Pleightlet™) for severe Hemophilia A patients with a history of inhibitory antibodies to FVIII placing an emphasis on safely maximizing benefit vs risk to the patient.
Monday, July 11, 2022
5:04 PM – 5:14 PM
Tuesday, July 12, 2022
3:30 PM – 3:45 PM