Marking National Biotechnology Month With Reflections From Our Leaders

National Biotechnology Month is celebrated every January and highlights the power of biotechnology to improve lives through innovation. As part of the biotech community, we invited members of our leadership team to share personal reflections on what inspired their careers in biotech and the breakthroughs they’re most excited about in the year ahead.

Meghan Leonard, Senior Vice President of Quality Management

Looking back, the experience that most shaped my path into biotech was my father’s multiple myeloma diagnosis nearly 15 years ago. At that time, the standard of care was limited, and the idea of a true cure felt distant. What changed everything for our family was his participation in clinical trials. Those trials weren’t guarantees or silver bullets, but they offered access to emerging therapies that steadily extended his life expectancy and gave him options when standard treatments ran out. 
  
Over the years, I’ve watched research move from incremental improvements to genuinely transformative approaches. Seeing how clinical trial participation helped my father stay well long enough to potentially benefit from newer breakthroughs, like today’s cellular therapies, made the importance of biotech deeply personal to me. Progress in this field isn’t always dramatic in the moment, but over time it compounds in powerful ways. For my family, it meant time: time to adapt, to hope, and to come closer to the possibility of a true cure. That perspective continues to drive why this work matters so much to me. 

Frank Agbogbo, Ph.D., Vice President of Process Development

When I graduated from Texas A&M University in 2005, I initially planned to pursue a career in academia. During my postdoctoral work at Novozymes, I witnessed firsthand how bench research could be translated into products that benefit society in months rather than years. That experience motivated me to commit my career to translating science into practice. In 2008, I joined Mascoma Corporation, where we successfully translated research from Lee Lynd’s laboratory at Dartmouth into commercial products. After the loss of my mother to illness, I transitioned into biologics in 2014, joining Cytovance Biologics, a CDMO supporting developers across multiple therapeutic areas. In 2021, I joined Forge Biologics and the leadership team to help build the CDMO business. Since first demonstrating our platform process at ASGCT in May 2022, we have achieved more than a 10-fold improvement in productivity, meaning each batch can treat ten times more patients and directly impact the cost of goods. I am proud of our work with nearly 60 developers across diverse indications and look forward to continued advances in manufacturing, process intensification, automation, and AI-driven innovation, which will enable more effective and accessible therapies. 

Ron Chantung, Senior Vice President of Operations

In 2002, I was at my second job out of college, which was a multi-disciplinary, R&D company where I had hands on, every day experience in cell and molecular biology. I soaked up every opportunity to carry and transfect mammalian cell lines, perform small scale plasmid purification, and run benchtop gene cloning, ELISAs, and took over responsibility for flow cytometry analysis for the research teams. Becoming a sponge to gaining technical experience, applying what I was learning, and developing a relationship with mentors that I followed for 20 plus years is what I have carried with me throughout my career. 

Working at Forge, the gene therapy space has me very excited about the upcoming and years to come. Forge is a standout, end to end CDMO for AAV gene therapies. We achieve this through innovative platforms and optimizing research through commercial manufacturing capabilities. Additionally, we are experiencing the reach of AAV beyond rare diseases into non-rare, mainstream medicines. This has me extremely motivated to contribute to Forge's impact on patients, clients, and employees. 

Taleen Barsoumian, Senior Vice President of Client Development

The Emily Whitehead story is not just a medical case study; it is in my opinion, the North Star of our entire field. For those of us working in the CGT space, it serves as a foundational narrative that transforms abstract science into tangible hope. Her journey from a pediatric cancer patient to a pioneer in CAR-T cell therapy in 2012, illustrates the profound impact that innovative therapies can have on individuals lives. Emily's case is the catalyst that accelerated FDA approval of Kymriah (Novartis + UPenn), the first-ever CAR-T therapy, demonstrating how success in one single patient can change the landscape of treatment for many. Her story inspires me to remain committed to advancing research and developing therapies for our clients that can change the narrative for patients facing dire diagnoses. I have been fortunate to work closely with the Whitehead family and Emily over the years, witnessing firsthand their resilience and hope throughout their journey. 

As we move forward, it's truly inspiring to reflect on how all of our client's programs have the potential to reach and positively impact so many patients. Each project we undertake represents not just another milestone for our clients, but a significant step toward improving patient outcomes and enhancing the quality of life for individuals suffering from various genetic diseases. Whether we are working on groundbreaking drug delivery systems or novel treatment protocols, each initiative contributes to a larger mission: to bring hope and healing to patients and their families, and that is something to be incredibly proud and excited about. 

Adam Davis, Ph.D., Vice President of Analytical Development 

Having spent decades in the gene therapy space and starting work in basic AAV biology before any significant clinical trials had even been conceived, one moment still sticks out. I had participated in the preclinical work for Sanfilipo Syndrome IIIB as a post doc and managed the clinical production as the Director of Manufacturing at Abeona. It wasn't until I had joined Forge and was introduced to Jen Kelly on her first day when Jen shared that her son Oliver (my youngest son's name as well) had received the therapy I had spent so many years willing it into the clinic. I thought I understood the value of the work until that moment clarified and concentrated what the value really is. We have the ability to change lives in such a profound way, and we all contribute to it regardless of our role. My hope for Forge and the entire gene therapy field is that we continue to optimize efficiency to speed the time from benchtop to clinic, and ultimately commercialization, at a scale that ensures every patient that desperately needs these therapies has access at a price they can afford. 

Ashley Craddick, Senior Director AAV Manufacturing

Looking back, the moment that most clearly shaped my path in biotech was the first time I witnessed a product I had helped manufacture being administered to a patient. Standing in the operating room and seeing that therapy delivered firsthand fundamentally changed how I view my work. While my role was indirect, the impact was deeply personal—knowing that something I contributed to could improve someone’s ability to function more easily and live more fully reinforced my “why” in a way no data set or milestone ever could. That experience stays with me and continues to motivate me every day, especially during the more challenging moments of development and manufacturing. 

Looking ahead, I am most excited about advances in gene therapy manufacturing that improve scalability, robustness, and speed without compromising quality. Innovations that reduce cycle time, increase throughput, and strengthen supply reliability are critical to moving therapies out of development and into the hands of patients who need them. These improvements may not always make headlines, but they are essential to ensuring gene therapies can be delivered consistently, affordably, and at scale—ultimately turning scientific promise into real-world impact. 

Chris Shilling, Chief Regulatory Officer

I’ve felt fortunate I was witness to a shifting time in the field of gene therapy. I remember the day Brian Kaspar, PhD, walked into our Center Director Jerry Mendell’s lab meeting at Nationwide Children’s Hospital with remarkable data—footage showing a mouse model of Spinal Muscular Atrophy whose physical abilities were dramatically improved after receiving an experimental gene therapy developed in his lab. None of us could have predicted that this would become a landmark discovery in the field, leading to the first approved systemically administered AAV gene therapy product and transforming the survival outlook for patients with SMA, whose life expectancy was otherwise less than two years of age.

I am energized by the future of gene therapy, particularly for rare diseases that still lack effective treatment options. The Food and Drug Administration has recently acknowledged the regulatory challenges that have limited broader adoption, and I appreciate the agency’s willingness to introduce flexibilities and apply enforcement discretion for orphan drug products. With several new initiatives outlined over the past year, I see meaningful opportunities for more transformative genetic medicines to reach new patient populations in the rare disease space.