Cabaletta Bio is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of engineered T cell therapies for patients with B-cell mediated autoimmune disease. Their lead product candidate, DSG3-CAART, is entering clinical development as a potential treatment for patients with mucosal pemphigus vulgaris, a prototypical B cell-mediated autoimmune disease. Co-founder Dr. Aimee Payne, MD, PhD is a worldwide leader in characterizing B cell-mediated autoantibody repertoires in pemphigus vulgaris and other autoimmune diseases. We discuss with Dr. Payne on how she translated research out of her lab into a full-fledged company and how she is keen on mentoring female physician-scientists to improve representation of women in healthcare leadership.

Group K Diagnostics (GKD) is developing a point-of-care diagnostic device, KromaHealth, that leverages paper-based microfluidics technology to reduce cost and time of testing for over 40 diseases. CEO and founder Brianna Wronko walks us through how she has translated her research at the University of Pennsylvania into a full fledged company that has raised $7 million to date. With the use of KromaHealth, she paints a picture of a more efficient doctor’s office visit devoid of the time lag between blood draw and lab result. For any diagnostic tool, the regulatory process can be daunting, so we go into the nuances of the 510(k) pathway for KromaHealth.

Ride Health is dedicated to addressing the transportation barrier to care. They have a software platform that helps care coordinators arrange rides for patients to and from their appointments. Co-founders Sumun Khetpal and Christine Yang discuss the origin of Ride Health and building its product as undergraduates at the University of Pennsylvania. Incorporating their respective clinical and financial backgrounds, they breakdown how to build a solution that aligns incentives across multiple stakeholders from patients to payers to physicians to transportation providers.

Co-founders Sumun Khetpal, Shabnam Eghbali, and Irene Park introduce their nonprofit Theia and their new podcast, Spotlight on Women in Health Ventures. The series will shed light on the advances women have made and continue to make as entrepreneurs and investors in healthcare. We’ll learn about their highs and lows and how women can take ownership of their ideas and translate them into companies. Spotlight on Women in Health Ventures will debut in early September 2020.