PEOPLE

Bruce L. Levine, PhD

Barbara and Edward Netter Professor in Cancer Gene Therapy
University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine

Contact InformationCenter for Cellular Immunotherapies
Smilow 8-114
3400 Civic Center Boulevard

Philadelphia, PA, 19104
Office: 215-746-1481

Email: levinebl@pennmedicine.upenn.edu

Specialty Division

Transfusion Medicine & Therapeutic Pathology

Research Expertise

Immunology, Cell and Gene Therapy

Other Expertise

Good Manufacturing Practices

Itmat Expertise

Dr. Levine's interests include cell, gene, and biologic therapy clinical trial development, manufacturing, and testing and lymphocyte growth, activation and senescence.

Education

B.A. (Major-Biology, Minor-History), The University of Pennsylvania , 1984
Ph.D. (Immunology and Infectious Diseases), The Johns Hopkins University, 1992

Specialty Certification

Postgraduate Training

Post-doctoral Fellow, Henry M. Jackson Foundation, Naval Medical Research Institute, National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, MD, 1992-1996

Awards and Honors

Honorable Mention, The Frederik Bang Award for Student Research, 1991
Sustained Superior Performance Award, 1997. The Henry M. Jackson Foundation, 1995
New Investigator Award, Clinical Immunology Society, 1997
Dynal Literature Award for 1996, 1997
Best Abstract Award International Society for Cellular Therapy Annual Meeting, 2004
Best Abstract Award International Society for Cellular Therapy Annual Meeting, 2007
Discover Magazine Top 100 Stories of 2011: #2 Designer Cells Block HIV, http://discovermagazine.com/2012/jan-feb/02; #10 Leukemia Cure, http://discovermagazine.com/2012/jan-feb/10, 2011
Highest Rated Scientific Abstract (blinded review), International Society for Cellular Therapy 17th Annual Meeting, 2011
Science Translational Medicine Top Downloaded paper for 2011, "T cells with chimerical antigen receptors have potent antitumor effects and can establish memory in patients with advanced leukemia", 2012
Dr. Audrey E. Evans Award of Excellence, Philadelphia Ronald McDonald House, 2014
Best Oral Abstract Award, International Society for Cellular Therapy Annual Meeting, 2015
Clinical Research Achievement Award from the Clinical Research Forum for Gene editing of CCR5 in autologous CD4 T cells of persons infected with HIV, 2015
Best Oral Abstract Award, International Society for Cellular Therapy Annual Meeting, 2016
William Osler Patient Oriented Research Award from the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, 2018
Wallace H. Coulter Award for Healthcare Innovation, Biomedical Engineering Society, 2019
Healthnetwork Foundation Service Excellence Award, 2019
"The Medicine Maker" Power List, 2019
Clinical Research Achievement Award from the Clinical Research Forum for "Predicting response of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia to chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy", 2019
National Marrow Donor Program/Be The Match ONE Forum 2020 Dennis Confer Innovate Award, 2020
Society for the Immunotherapy of Cancer Team Science Award, 2020
"The Medicine Maker" Power List, 2020
"The Medicine Maker" Power List, 2021
"The Medicine Maker" Power List
https://themedicinemaker.com/awards/power-list/2022#advanced%20medicine, 2022
PMWC 2023 Luminary Award recognizing the recent contributions of prominent figures who have accelerated Precision Medicine into the clinic, 2023

Memberships and Professional Organizations

International Society for Cellular Therapy, 1999 - present
American Society of Gene Therapy, 1999 - Present
American Association for the Advancement of Science, 2002 - Present
Abstract reviewer for International Society for Cellular Therapy Annual Meeting, 2003 - Present
Abstract reviewer for International Society for Cellular Therapy Annual Meeting, Gene Therapy, 2004 - Present
NIH Study Section, Immunology Integrated Review Group SSS-4 SBIR/STTR, 2004 - Present
Abstract reviewer for American Society for Gene Therapy Annual Meeting, 2004 - Present
Abstract reviewer for International Society for Cellular Therapy Annual Meeting, Gene Therapy, 2005 - Present
NIH/NIAID Study Section, Center for AIDS Research: D-CFAR, CFAR, 2005 - Present
Abstract reviewer for International Society for Cellular Therapy Annual Meeting, Gene Therapy, 2006 - Present
NIH/NIAID Clinical Trial Planning (R34) Grants Study Section, 2006 - Present
Abstract reviewer for American Society for Gene Therapy Annual Meeting, Cell Processing and Vector Production, 2007 - Present
Abstract reviewer for International Society for Cellular Therapy Annual Meeting, Gene Therapy, 2007 - Present
Abstract reviewer for International Society for Cellular Therapy Annual Meeting, Gene Therapy, 2008 - Present
Coordinating Abstract reviewer for American Society for Gene Therapy Annual Meeting, Cell Processing and Vector Production, 2008 - Present
NIH/NIAID Study Section, Center for AIDS Research: D-CFAR, CFAR, 2009 - Present
European Commission review panel for FP7 Cooperation Work Programme "HEALTH.2010.1.4-1: Translational research on cell-based immunotherapy" Brussels, Belgium, 2010 - 2011
Cambridge Healthtech Institute, 2010 - Present
NIH/NHLBI Program: Production Assistance for Cellular Therapies, 2010 - Present
Abstract reviewer for American Society for Gene Therapy Annual Meeting, Cell Processing and Vector Production, 2010 - Present
American Society for Gene and Cell Therapy, 2011 - Present
European Commission review panel for FP7 Cooperation Work Programme "HEALTH.2012.1.4-4: "Targeted nucleic acid delivery as an innovative therapeutic or prophylactic approach" Brussels, Belgium, 2011 - 2012
Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas: Texas Access to Cancer Cell Therapies (TACCT), 2014 - Present
Israel Science Foundation, 2018 - Present
National Heart Lung and Blood Institute Cure Sickle Cell Initiative, 2019 - 2020

Web Links


Selected Publications

Comprehensive Serum Proteome Profiling of Cytokine Release Syndrome and Immune Effector Cell Associated Neurotoxicity Syndrome in B-Cell ALL Patients Receiving CART19

Diorio C, Shraim R, Myers R, Behrens EM, Canna S, Bassiri H, Aplenc R, Burudpakdee C, Chen F, DiNofia AM, Gill S, Gonzalez V, Lambert MP, Barz Leahy A, Levine BL, Lindell RB, Maude SL, Melenhorst JJ, Newman H, Perazzelli J, Seif AE, Lacey SF, June CH, Barrett DM, Grupp SA, Teachey DT., Clin Cancer Res, 2022, PMID:35705524

Read article

Anti-CD19 CAR T Cells in Combination with Ibrutinib for the Treatment of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

Gill SI, Frey NV, Hexner E, Metzger S, O'Brien M, Hwang WT, Brogdon JL, Davis MM, Fraietta JA, Gaymon A, Gladney WL, Lacey SF, Lamontagne A, Mato AR, Maus MV, Melenhorst JJ, Pequignot E, Ruella M, Shestov MA, Byrd JC, Schuster SJ, Siegel DL, Levine BL, June CH, Porter DL., Blood Adv, 2022, PMID:35349631

Read article

Decade-long leukaemia remissions with persistence of CD4(+) CAR T cells

Melenhorst JJ, Chen GM, Wang M, Porter DL, Chen C, Collins MA, Gao P, Bandyopadhyay S, Sun H, Zhao Z, Lundh S, Pruteanu-Malinici I, Nobles CL, Maji S, Frey NV, Gill SI, Tian L, Kulikovskaya I, Gupta M, Ambrose DE, Davis MM, Fraietta JA, Brogdon JL, Young RM, Chew A, Levine BL, Siegel DL, Alanio C, Wherry EJ, Bushman FD, Lacey SF, Tan K, June CH., Nature 602(7897): 503-509, 2022, PMID:35110735

Read article

Predicting T-cell quality during manufacturing through an artificial intelligence-based integrative multiomics analytical platform

Odeh-Couvertier VY, Dwarshuis NJ, Colonna MB, Levine BL, Edison AS, Kotanchek T, Roy K, Torres-Garcia W., Bioeng Transl Med 7(): e10282, 2022, PMID:35600660

Read article

Humanized CD19-Targeted Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T Cells in CAR-Naive and CAR-Exposed Children and Young Adults With Relapsed or Refractory Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

Myers RM, Li Y, Barz Leahy A, Barrett DM, Teachey DT, Callahan C, Fasano CC, Rheingold SR, DiNofia A, Wray L, Aplenc R, Baniewicz D, Liu H, Shaw PA, Pequignot E, Getz KD, Brogdon JL, Fesnak AD, Siegel DL, Davis MM, Bartoszek C, Lacey SF, Hexner EO, Chew A, Wertheim GB, Levine BL, June CH, Grupp SA, Maude SL., Journal of Clinical Oncology 39(27): 3044-3055, 2021, PMID:34156874

Read article

A Randomized Phase II Trial of Idiotype Vaccination and Adoptive Autologous T-Cell Transfer in Multiple Myeloma patients

Qazilbash MH, Saini NY, Soung-Chul C, Wang Z, Stadtmauer E, Baladandayuthapani V, Lin H, Tross B, Honhar M, Rao SS, Kim K, Popescu M, Szymura SJ, Zhang T, Anderson AJ, Bashir Q, Shpall EJ, Orlowski RZ, Levine BL, Kerr N, Garfall A, Cohen AD, Vogl DT, Dengel K, June CH, Champlin RE, Kwak LW., Blood, 2021, PMID:34521108

Read article

The Safety of Bridging Radiation with Anti-BCMA CAR T-Cell Therapy for Multiple Myeloma

Manjunath SH, Cohen AD, Lacey SF, Davis MM, Garfall AL, Melenhorst JJ, Maxwell R, Arscott WT, Maity A, Jones JA, Plastaras JP, Stadtmauer EA, Levine BL, June CH, Milone MC, Paydar I., Clin Cancer Res, 2021, PMID:34526365

Read article

BET bromodomain protein inhibition reverses chimeric antigen receptor extinction and reinvigorates exhausted T cells in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

Kong W, Dimitri A, Wang W, Jung IY, Ott CJ, Fasolino M, Wang Y, Kulikovskaya I, Gupta M, Yoder T, DeNizio JE, Everett JK, Williams EF, Xu J, Scholler J, Reich TJ, Bhoj VG, Haines KM, Maus MV, Melenhorst JJ, Young RM, Jadlowsky JK, Marcucci KT, Bradner JE, Levine BL, Porter DL, Bushman FD, Kohli RM, June CH, Davis MM, Lacey SF, Vahedi G, Fraietta JA., J Clin Invest 131(): e145459, 2021, PMID:34396987

Read article

B-cell maturation antigen chimeric antigen receptor T-cell re-expansion in a patient with myeloma following salvage programmed cell death protein 1 inhibitor-based combination therapy

Bernabei L, Tian L, Garfall AL, Melenhorst JJ, Lacey SF, Stadtmauer EA, Vogl DT, Gonzalez VE, Plesa G, Young RM, Waxman A, Levine BL, June CH, Milone MC, Cohen AD., British Journal of Haematology 193(4): 851-855, 2021, PMID:33713436

Read article

CCR5-edited CD4+ T cells augment HIV-specific immunity to enable post-rebound control of HIV replication

Tebas P, Jadlowsky JK, Shaw PA, Tian L, Esparza E, Brennan AL, Kim S, Naing SY, Richardson MW, Vogel AN, Maldini CR, Kong H, Liu X, Lacey SF, Bauer AM, Mampe F, Richman LP, Lee G, Ando D, Levine BL, Porter DL, Zhao Y, Siegel DL, Bar KJ, June CH, Riley JL., Journal of Clinical Investigation 131(7): e144486, 2021, PMID:33571163

Read article