May 7, 2026

Durham, N.C., – MAY 7, 2026 – AskBio Inc. (AskBio), a gene therapy company wholly owned and independently operated as a subsidiary of Bayer AG, will deliver 6 presentations at the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT) 29th Annual Meeting, which takes place May 11–15, 2026, in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. The company’s oral and poster presentations will provide updates on important research activities in gene therapy, as well as subsidiary Viralgen’s advancements in manufacturing capabilities. On Friday, May 15, Mansuo Shannon, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer at AskBio, will co-chair a scientific symposium titled, “Gene Therapy for the Heart: Updates on clinical trials,” organized by the Cardiovascular Gene and Cell Therapy Committee. Within the symposium, she will present an update on protein phosphatase inhibitor-based investigational gene therapy for congestive heart failure.   In addition, a key Viralgen presentation will showcase a multivariate approach to small-scale model qualification in upstream manufacturing, which may enable predictive and scalable process design. Complementing this, the company will present data highlighting analytical advances, including long-read sequencing to assess genome integrity and a droplet digital PCR (ddPCR)-based method to quantify the residual adenovirus early region 1A (E1A) gene derived from the Pro10TM cells that may remain in recombinant adeno-associated virus (rAAV) samples, demonstrating enhanced control over vector quality and safety. These developments underscore Viralgen’s commitment to advancing the robustness of AAV manufacturing and the broader scientific understanding underpinning gene therapies. “Advancing gene therapy requires more than scientific innovation. It demands a step-change in how we design, control, and scale our manufacturing science,” said Gustavo Pesquin, Chief Executive Officer at AskBio. “Viralgen continues to progress manufacturing science by strengthening the link between process development, analytical precision, and product quality in AAV production. Our work being presented at ASGCT 2026 reflects our efforts to combine deeper process understanding with analytical tools to enhance quality, consistency, and confidence in AAV products, which are critical as we seek to unlock the potential of gene therapies, lead science, and investigate clinical outcomes to help transform people’s lives.” AskBio’s presentations at ASGCT include (all times EDT): Orals Posters AskBio continues to develop an ambitious portfolio of investigational AAV-based gene therapies to treat several serious diseases around the world, including congestive heart failure, limb-girdle muscular dystrophy, multiple system atrophy, Parkinson’s disease, and Pompe disease. By targeting these therapy areas, AskBio aims to deliver innovative treatments that may possibly benefit tens of millions of patients worldwide.1–6 About AskBio AskBio Inc., a wholly owned and independently operated subsidiary of Bayer AG, is a fully integrated gene therapy company dedicated to steering gene therapy into a new era where it can transform the lives of a wider range of people living with rare and more common diseases. The company maintains a portfolio of clinical programs across a range of disease indications related to a single gene or multiple factors across cardiovascular, central nervous system, and neuromuscular conditions, with a clinical-stage pipeline that includes investigational therapeutics for heart failure, limb-girdle muscular dystrophy, multiple system atrophy, Parkinson’s disease, and Pompe ...read the news