Neil C. Sheppard, D.Phil

Adjunct Associate Professor of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, Head of the T Cell Engineering Lab (TCEL), Director for Research Technologies & Innovation

Dr Sheppard joined the Center for Cellular Immunotherapies in October 2019 bringing with him a wealth of experience from over a dozen years spent in Big Pharma and Biotechnology companies focused on discovery and clinical translation of innovative medicines. This experience spans multiple modalities: small molecule compounds, biologics and cell & gene therapies, as well as multiple geographies: UK, Australia, California and Philadelphia. Since 2015 Dr Sheppard has worked exclusively on cellular immunotherapies for cancer (CAR-T, TCR-T and CAR-NK).

Dr Sheppard obtained a B.Sc. degree in Immunology with Study in Industry from the University of Bristol (UK) in 2002, with his industry year spent at GSK. He subsequently obtained his D.Phil in Vaccine & Adjuvant Research from the University of Oxford in 2007. Following a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation funded Postdoc at the University of Oxford Dr Sheppard joined the Pharmaceutical Industry working first at Pfizer in the UK and California, and subsequently for GSK in Philadelphia and Sydney, Australia, followed by a period at Tmunity Therapeutics a CCI Spinout biotech company. During his time in industry Dr Sheppard held positions of increasing responsibility leading programs through drug development milestones and into the clinic, opening Investigational New Drug (IND) applications and leading strategy for Ph1/2 clinical trials. He also led teams of lab-based scientists, established and managed biotech and academic collaborations, and supported business development deals.

At CCI Dr Sheppard leads the T Cell Engineering Lab (TCEL), facilitates partnerships with biotech companies, and leads the strategy for our clinical stage Mesothelin-specific CAR-T program.