Aldevron Breakthrough Blog
Webinar On-demand: Harnessing the Potential of Gene Therapies
June 11, 2025 by Aldevron
Innovations and Improvements in Viral Gene Therapy
Rare diseases are getting more attention as the means of treatment advance with technology. But despite the considerable promise that viral gene therapies hold for rare disease patients, the prohibitive cost of development and relatively low commercial interest for rare disease treatments can prevent cutting-edge therapies from reaching their full potential.
In our webinar, Harnessing the Potential of Gene Therapies: Innovations and Improvements in Viral Gene Therapy, experts in viral gene therapy development and manufacturing highlight how innovations and improvements could address key barriers in viral gene therapies.
Dr. Steven Gray, Professor in Pediatric Neurology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, discussed the potential of AAV-mediated gene therapy as a platform approach to treat multiple genetic neurological diseases, and provides suggestions to streamline translational studies and reduce costs. He was joined by Eric Talley, Senior Technical Sales Specialist at Aldevron, who outlined improvements and innovations that address challenges to viral gene therapy manufacturing.
Key learning objectives
- Viral gene therapy approaches for genetic diseases
- How regulatory pathways and technological innovations can streamline studies and reduce costs
- Manufacturing solutions to address key challenges and support development of these life changing therapies
View the on-demand webinar
Steven J. Gray, PhD
Helen J. and Robert S. Strauss Distinguished Professor in Pediatric Neurology; University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Dr. Steven Gray received a B.S. degree with honors from Auburn University followed by a Ph.D. in molecular biology from Vanderbilt University and postdoctoral training at the UNC Chapel Hill Gene Therapy Center. He is currently a Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. Dr. Gray is the co-director of the UTSW Gene Therapy Program and director of the UTSW Viral Vector Facility.
He maintains affiliations with the Department of Molecular Biology, the Department of Neurology, and the Eugene McDermott Center for Human Growth and Development at UT Southwestern. Dr. Gray’s core expertise is in AAV gene therapy vector engineering, followed by optimizing approaches to deliver a gene to the nervous system.
His research focus has also been heavily focused in developing AAV-based treatments for neurological diseases, some of which have translated into clinical trials. He is an inventor on over 25 awarded or pending patents and author on over 100 publications related to gene therapy.
- Have questions on this topic? Contact Us
- Visit our Viral Gene Therapy page
- Have an idea for a topic? Let us know!
Aldevron serves the biotechnology industry with custom production of nucleic acids and proteins. Thousands of clients use Aldevron-produced plasmids, RNA and gene editing enzymes for projects ranging from research grade to clinical trials to commercial applications. Aldevron specializes in cGMP manufacturing and is known for inventing the GMP-Source® quality system. Aldevron operates the largest cGMP plasmid DNA manufacturing facility in the world at company headquarters in Fargo, North Dakota, with additional facilities in Madison, Wisconsin.