Dr. Malcolm Brenner and Dr. Cliona Rooney from Baylor College of Medicine have been named as fellows of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). They are among 170 academic inventors recognized for their innovative contributions that have significantly impacted quality of life, economic development, and societal welfare.
Dr. Malcolm Brenner is the Founding Director of the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy at Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital, and Houston Methodist Hospital. He holds positions in various departments at Baylor and is a member of the Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center. His research focuses on using gene transfer to enhance immune responses against human tumors through vaccines and genetically modified T cells. Brenner's work has provided insights into stem cell biology and demonstrated that T cells can be genetically modified to aid patients with infections and cancer post-transplantation.
Dr. Cliona Rooney is a professor at the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy at Baylor, holding the Thomas J. Rosenbalm, M.D., Presidential Chair. Her research involves virus-specific T-cells (VSTs) to treat viral diseases and malignancies, including developing strategies to make T cells resistant to tumor microenvironment inhibition. Her clinical trials have shown success in rendering gene-modified T-cells safe through an inducible caspase 9 suicide switch.
The 2024 NAI Fellow class includes representatives from 135 research universities and institutions worldwide, collectively holding over 5,000 U.S. patents. The inductees will be honored at the NAI Annual Conference on June 26, 2025, in Atlanta.
The full list of the Class of 2024 NAI Fellows can be accessed online.
