In the In Conversation With series, a part of the free DDW podcast, DDW speaks with members of the drug discovery industry about their work and how it helps turn science into business.   

In this episode, Megan Thomas is in conversation with Dr Jude Samulski, Co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer at AskBio. Dr. Samulski’s graduate work demonstrated the first substrate for adeno-associated viruses (AAV) as a viral vector and culminated in the first US patent involving non-AAV genes inserted into AAV.  

Dr Samulski’s discoveries in AAV played a profound role in shaping the evolution of the gene therapy field. His work remains a key component of every FDA-approved AAV therapeutic and will remain central to future advances. Dr Samulski has advanced therapeutics into human clinical trials for haemophilia, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, giant axonal neuropathy, Pompe disease and heart failure. He holds more than 200 patents related to AAV technology. He co-founded AskBio in 2001 and in October 2020, Bayer acquired AskBio for $4 billion.