The 2021 NYAM Annual Awards: Innovators in Health

Katalin Karikó, PhD, is senior vice president at BioNTech SE since 2013. She is also adjunct professor at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, where she has worked for 24 years. She received her PhD in biochemistry from University of Szeged, Hungary, in 1982. For four decades, her research has been focusing on RNA-mediated mechanisms with the ultimate goal of developing in vitro-transcribed mRNA for protein therapy. She investigated RNA-mediated immune activation and co-discovered that nucleoside modifications suppress immunogenicity of RNA. This groundbreaking work unlocked the opportunity for the therapeutic use of mRNA. She is co-inventor on mRNA-related patents, thirteen of those granted by the U.S. for application of non-immunogenic RNA. She co-founded and served as CEO of RNARx, a company dedicated to developing nucleoside-modified mRNA for therapy. Her patent, co-invented with Drew Weissman on nucleoside-modified uridines in mRNA, is used to create the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines by BioNTech/Pfizer and Moderna/NIH. For her achievement she received the Rosenstiel Award, Széchenyi Prize, Semmelweis Award, Wilhelm Exner Medal, Reichstein Medal, Princess Asturias Award and the Vilcek Prize.

Drew Weissman, MD, PhD, is a professor of Medicine at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania. He received his graduate degrees from Boston University School of Medicine. Dr. Weissman, in collaboration with Dr. Katalin Karikó, discovered the ability of modified nucleosides in RNA to suppress activation of innate immune sensors and increase the translation of mRNA containing certain modified nucleosides. The nucleoside-modified mRNA-lipid nanoparticle vaccine platform Dr. Weissman’s lab created is used in the first two approved COVID-19 vaccines by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna. They continue to develop other vaccines that induce potent antibody and T cell responses with mRNA-based vaccines. Dr. Weissman’s lab also develops methods to replace genetically deficient proteins, edit the genome, and specifically target cells and organs with mRNA-LNPs, including lung, heart, brain, CD4+ cells, all T cells, and bone marrow stem cells.

Jennifer Breen Feist, JD, is a lawyer in Charlottesville, VA, specializing in finance, real estate and wealth management. She is the co-founder of the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation and sister of Dr. Lorna Breen. She serves as treasurer of the Central Virginia Chapter of Girls on the Run and is also a co-founder of Women United, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting causes that benefit women and children. She holds a Juris Doctorate from Penn State Dickinson School of Law and a BS in Political Science from Elizabethtown College.

J. Corey Feist, JD, MBA, is a healthcare executive with over 20 years of experience. Corey is the co-founder of the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation and currently serves as the chief executive officer of the University of Virginia Physicians Group, the medical group practice of UVA Health comprising 1,200+ physicians and advanced practice providers. Corey also holds an adjunct faculty appointment at the UVA Darden School of Business where he recently taught a course entitled, “Managing in a Pandemic: The Challenge of COVID-19." Corey is also the Chair of the Board of the Charlottesville Free Clinic. Corey holds his Master of Business Administration from the UVA Darden School of Business, his Juris Doctorate from Penn State Dickinson School of Law and his bachelor’s degree from Hamilton College.

Reed V. Tuckson, MD, FACP, is managing director of Tuckson Health Connections, LLC, a vehicle to advance initiatives that support optimal health and well-being through the intersection of health promotion and disease prevention; applied data and analytics; enhanced quality and efficiency in care delivery; and the application of telehealth and biotech innovations.

Currently, Dr. Tuckson’s focus is on advancing his work as a co-founder of the Black Coalition Against COVID, a multi-stakeholder and interdisciplinary effort working to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic in Washington, D.C., and nationally by coordinating the four historically Black medical schools, the NMA, the Cobb Institute of the NMA, the National Black Nurses Association, the National Urban League, and BlackDoctor.org.

Previously, he enjoyed a long tenure as executive vice president and chief of medical affairs for UnitedHealth Group, a Fortune 20 health and well-being company.

A recognized leader in his field, Dr. Tuckson is honored to have been appointed to leadership roles at the National Institutes of Health; National Academy of Medicine; numerous federal Advisory Committees; and corporate, non-profit and academic boards.

Previously, he served as president of the Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science; the senior vice president for professional standards of the AMA; the SVP for the March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation; and the commissioner of public health for Washington, D.C.

He has been recognized several times by Modern Healthcare Magazine’s listing of the “50 Most Powerful Physician Executives” in healthcare.

He is a graduate of Howard University, Georgetown University School of Medicine, and the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania’s General Internal Medicine Residency and Fellowship Programs, where he was also a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholar studying at the Wharton School of Business.

Kizzmekia S. Corbett, PhD, is an assistant professor of immunology and infectious diseases at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Shutzer Assistant Professor at Harvard’s Radcliff Institute of Advanced Study, and associate member of the Phillip T. and Susan M. Ragon Institute. Prior to Harvard, she was a research fellow and scientific lead at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Vaccine Research Center. Dr. Corbett uses her viral immunology expertise to propel novel vaccine development for pandemic preparedness, including mRNA-1273, a leading vaccine against SARS-CoV-2. The vaccine concept incorporated in mRNA-1273 was designed by Dr. Corbett’s NIH team from viral sequence and rapidly deployed to industry partner, Moderna, Inc., for Phase 1 clinical trial, which unprecedently began only 66 days from viral sequence release. mRNA-1273 was shown to be 94.1% effective in Phase 3 trial and is authorized for use in multiple countries. Alongside mRNA-1273, Dr. Corbett boasts a patent portfolio that also includes universal coronavirus and influenza vaccine concepts and novel therapeutic antibodies. In all, she has over 15 years of experience studying dengue virus, respiratory syncytial virus, influenza virus, and coronaviruses, garnering several prestigious awards, such as the Benjamin Franklin Next Gen Award and the Salzman Memorial Award in Virology. Combining her research goals with her knack for mentorship, Dr. Corbett invests much of her time in underserved communities as an advocator of STEM education and vaccine awareness. In 2008, she received a BS in biological sciences, with a secondary major in sociology, from the University of Maryland – Baltimore County, where she was a Meyerhoff Scholar and NIH undergraduate scholar. She then obtained her PhD in microbiology and immunology in 2014 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill holding multiple honors, including a director’s scholarship.

Barney S. Graham, MD, PhD, is deputy director of the NIAID Vaccine Research Center. He was a professor of medicine at Vanderbilt with a joint appointment in the Department of Microbiology & Immunology before joining the VRC in 2000 as a founding member. He is a recipient of the Robert M. Chanock Award for lifetime contributions to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) research, the Dr. Charles Mérieux Award for Achievement in Vaccinology and Immunology from the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, and the Albert B. Sabin Gold Medal Award from the Sabin Vaccine Institute. His primary interests are vaccine development for viral diseases, viral pathogenesis, mechanisms of immunity, and pandemic preparedness. He directs basic laboratory research, contributes to the pipeline of new VRC vaccines, and provides oversight of candidate VRC vaccines and antibodies in advanced development including those for HIV, Ebola, and Chikungunya. His laboratory explores the structural basis for antibody-mediated viral neutralization, investigates basic mechanisms by which T cells affect viral clearance and immunopathology, and has developed novel vaccines for RSV, influenza, Zika, paramyxoviruses, and coronaviruses including the first COVID-19 vaccine and monoclonal antibody to enter clinical testing and that have now achieved Emergency Use Authorization. He earned a BA from Rice University, an MD from the University of Kansas School of Medicine, and a PhD in Microbiology & Immunology from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, where he also completed internal medicine residency, chief residencies, and a fellowship in infectious diseases.

William Gruber, MD, is senior vice president of Pfizer Vaccine Clinical Research and Development, and responsible for global clinical research and development of vaccines to meet licensure and post-licensure requirements. He has over 35 years of experience in vaccine development. Dr. Gruber joined Pfizer in 1999 as vice president of clinical vaccine research and development for Wyeth, now Pfizer Inc. Other experience includes roles as associate professor of pediatrics in the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and director of the Diagnostic Virology Laboratory at Vanderbilt University Hospital.

Dr. Gruber’s clinical research group has been responsible for global clinical research and development of now licensed pneumococcal conjugate, meningococcal conjugate, rLP2086 meningococcal B, and influenza vaccines, as well as investigational Staph aureus, C. difficile, HIV, RSV, parainfluenza, and HSV vaccines. Dr. Gruber also guides the clinical research and development for Pfizer’s Group B streptococcus and RSV maternal immunization vaccine programs, as well as vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) and Lyme disease.

He is board-certified in pediatrics and pediatric infectious diseases and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics, member of the Society for Pediatric Research, Fellow of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, Fellow of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society, and member of the America Society for Microbiology.

Consultant/reviewer: NIAID, PATH, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and scientific journals.

Education: BA, Mathematical Sciences, Rice University, Houston, Texas; MD, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas; Pediatric Residency, Chief Residency, and Pediatric Infectious Disease Fellowship, Baylor College of Medicine, and Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, Texas.

James Flynn, MS, is the managing partner of Deerfield. He joined Deerfield in 2000, focusing on pharmaceutical companies and gradually assuming broader responsibility throughout the firm. In 2004 Jim began co-managing the firm with Deerfield’s founder, Arnold Snider. Upon Arnie’s retirement in 2005, Jim assumed his current role overseeing Deerfield’s investment activities as well as the management of the firm. Since that time, the firm has expanded its investment capabilities to include private structured financings, developed additional proprietary market research instruments through the Deerfield Institute, and created the Deerfield Foundation to contribute toward the health and welfare of disadvantaged children.

Before joining Deerfield, Jim was a top ranked analyst at Furman Selz from 1996 to 2000, where he built a team to cover the pharmaceutical and medical device industries and also managed a proprietary trading account. Previously he served from 1993 to 1996 as vice president of corporate development of Alpharma Inc., a pharmaceutical company, where his responsibilities included business development and strategic planning and the management of several licensing transactions. Jim began his career in healthcare investing from 1988 to 1993 at Kidder, Peabody & Co., where he ultimately served as a senior analyst covering the specialty pharmaceutical industry.

Since 2009, Jim has served as the Chairman of the Quality Committee of the Board of Trustees of Continuum Health Partners until its merger in 2013 with Mount Sinai Health System, where he continues to serve on the Board of Trustees. He also serves on the Board of Trustees of The New York Academy of Medicine. He holds a B.S. in Cellular and Molecular Biology and Economics from the University of Michigan.