The CrickConnect team are delighted to be able to invite community members to join us for the institute's regular Crick Lecture.

Crick Lectures provide a broad insight into biomedical research from leading scientists. Not to be missed, the one-hour lectures are the event of the week for the Crick community to come together. The lectures aim to be accessible to scientists across different disciplines, while also offering something for the specialist.

You can request an online link to review or there is also an opportunity to catch up with colleagues and friends over refreshments after Crick Lectures from 17:00. If you are able to join us in person at the Crick please let us know at connect@crick.ac.uk so we can arrange access.

Sergio Quezada, Professor of Cancer Immunology and Immunotherapy at UCL's Cancer Institute. (TALK RESCHEDULED FROM JULY 2024)

Sergio Quezada is  Professor of Cancer Immunology and Immunotherapy at University College London Cancer Institute and Chief Scientific officer of Achilles Therapeutics. He earned his undergraduate degree in biochemistry from the P. Universidad Católica de Chile and a Ph.D. from Dartmouth Medical School in the US. In 2004, he joined the laboratory of the Nobel Laureate Prof James Allison at MSKCC, where he unveiled mechanisms underpinning the anti-tumour activity of anti CTLA-4 antibodies.   

His work at UCL focuses in cancer immunology, tumour microenvironment, regulatory T cells and immune checkpoint blockade. His team’s research unveiled the critical role of Fc receptors and the tumour microenvironment in the mechanism of action of anti CTLA-4 antibodies, and he is an inventor of key patents supporting the clinical development of antibodies targeting immune checkpoints including VISTA, ICOS and CD25. In the last few years, Prof Quezada and his team co-led the development of a best in class Treg-depleting anti-human CD25 antibody acquired by Roche in 2018 and currently in clinical evaluation against solid cancers.

In addition to immune regulation, Prof Quezada’s research also aims to characterize and interrogate immune reactivity and function within the microenvironment of different human cancers, helping identify mechanisms of response and resistance to immunotherapy. His work in this area led to creation of a spin off company, Achilles therapeutics, a clinical stage company delivering personalised T cell therapies against cancer. In April 2020 Prof Quezada stepped in as Chief Scientific Officer of Achilles to lead the current and future scientific direction of Achilles. 

Prof Quezada was a recipient of Dartmouth’s John W. Strohbern Medal for excellence in biomedical research, the Cancer Research Institute new investigator award, a CRUK Career Development Fellowship and a CRUK Senior Cancer Research Fellowship. In 2022 Prof Quezada was elected Fellow of the European Academy for Cancer Sciences