Dr. Larry Couture is a biotechnology executive and translational scientist with more than three decades of experience in experimental therapeutics, with particular expertise in cell and gene therapies and small-molecule drug development. His experience spans the full spectrum of therapeutic development, including organizational and project management, business development, intellectual property and patenting, contract negotiation, process development, GMP manufacturing, regulatory affairs, clinical development, and clinical trial management.

 

Dr. Couture has played a key role in numerous first-in-human clinical studies, including some of the earliest human gene therapy trials and the first direct administration to humans of a genetically engineered virus, as well as other pioneering cell and gene therapy programs. He also produced the lentiviral vectors used in the first successful CAR-T cell treatments for cancer.

 

Prior to entering the biotechnology industry, Dr. Couture spent many years at City of Hope Medical Center, where he served as Founding Director and Senior Vice President of the Center for Applied Technology. In this role, he established and oversaw the Offices of IND Development and Regulatory Affairs, Quality Systems, and Technology Licensing, as well as two precedent-setting GMP biologics manufacturing facilities. He also provided oversight for nearly 50 active Investigational New Drugs (INDs).

 

Dr. Couture served for six years on the U.S. FDA’s Cellular, Tissue and Gene Therapies Advisory Committee and participated in numerous FDA, NIH, and NCI working groups focused on the development and regulation of advanced therapies.

 

Since leaving City of Hope in 2016, Dr. Couture has held executive, board, and advisory positions with numerous biopharmaceutical companies and investment organizations. His leadership roles have included CEO and Director of Orbsen Therapeutics Ltd; CEO and Director of Arrogene, Inc.; President and Vice Chair of Vault Pharma, Inc.; President, COO and Director of Westwood Bioscience, Inc.; COO and Director of LongLifeRx, Inc.; COO, CSO and Director of Novonco, Inc.; and COO and CSO of Fortem Neurosciences, Inc. He has also served as a Managing Partner of Multiverse Fund I and II.

 

Dr. Couture currently provides consulting and strategic advisory services to biopharmaceutical companies and academic institutions. He has advised numerous California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) clinical and translational projects, served as an ad hoc analyst for venture capital firms, and mentored numerous biotechnology start-ups, particularly in Southern California.

 

Earlier in his career, Dr. Couture founded and/or served as a Director or CEO of several biotechnology companies, including Cell City, Genbasix, Aliva Biopharmaceuticals, and eMTA Commons. He also held senior scientific and management positions at Genzyme Corporation and Ribozyme Pharmaceuticals.

 

With a career spanning pioneering gene and cell therapy development, therapeutic manufacturing, regulatory strategy, clinical translation, and biotechnology company leadership, Dr. Couture brings an unusually broad perspective across the entire path from scientific discovery to clinical development and commercialization.