Professor Filipe Pereira
Professor Filipe Pereira is a pioneering force in molecular medicine, celebrated widely for his transformative work in cellular reprogramming and cancer immunotherapy. It’s a field he started after dedicating over two decades to study the change of cellular identity. Filipe’s groundbreaking work is not just advancing science; it’s shaping the future of cancer care, one breakthrough at a time.
Born in the small town of Vila Nova de Cerveira in northern Portugal, Filipe Pereira’s journey into the world of science began at a crossroads. Torn between two seemingly unrelated interests: architecture and biology.
At the University of Porto, Filipe applied to both fields, gaining acceptance into each. But everything fell into place when a groundbreaking scientific discovery made global headlines.
At the time, the research that led to the creation of Dolly the sheep had just started circulating – and that brought a fresh understanding of how a single cell could be turned into a whole new organism. To me, that was fascinating. And it set my course towards studying biology.
Hooked on the question of how life worked at its most fundamental level, Filipe sparked a career dedicated to understanding the very building blocks of life. It was the catalyst that led him to explore the progressive worlds of epigenetics, stem cell biology, and reprogramming.
The early years
Filipe’s science career began with his acceptance into the prestigious GABA programme, where he was able to choose his own PhD topic. It was during his first year there that a landmark study was published on the histone code, igniting his passion for epigenetics, the study of how the same genome gives rise to diverse cell types.
It was this fascination that led Filipe to move from Portugal to the UK to join Professor Dame Amanda (Mandy) Fisher’s lab at Imperial College London. Here, he focused on reprogramming somatic cells. As his understanding of epigenetics and haematopoiesis deepened, he realised the potential of combining reprogramming with immunology.
What began as an interest in both biology and architecture soon evolved into a mission to reprogram cells and unlock new possibilities in science and medicine. I began to architect the fate of cells. And in the end, I found a way to merge both of my passions into one.
Laying the groundwork
Before settling on Imperial, Filipe interviewed at top labs across the US and Europe. But it was the MRC Clinical Sciences Centre pioneering research on epigenetics and its unmatched resources – from imaging technologies to flow cytometry – that ultimately led him to choose Imperial. The collaborative spirit at Imperial proved to be a perfect fit, fueling Filipe’s work.
“Doing your training with really good scientists is, I think, critical for success, because you learn by doing and you learn by example,” explained Filipe. He discussed how his experience shaped him and how he now applies those lessons to lead his own research group, transforming the way he discusses science with his team.
“At Imperial, I learned how to conduct and think about science – what makes a good experiment versus a bad one. In contrast, when I moved to the US for my postdoctoral fellowship afterwards, I experienced the 'something will pan out' approach where multiple experiments were launched at the same time. This left little room for the luxury of carefully planning experiments. The approaches were very different, but I’m grateful that my early development as a scientist was shaped at Imperial first.”
A new door opens
After completing his postdoctoral training at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, where he first applied cellular reprogramming concepts to haematopoiesis, Filipe returned to Portugal to take his first faculty position at the University of Coimbra. While his research group grew, limited funding posed challenges in balancing ambition with risk.
“Then, I learned about an exciting opportunity in Sweden: the Wallenberg Center for Molecular Medicine. The initiative, launched by the Wallenberg Foundation, was recruiting for its centres across Sweden, including Lund University”.
Filipe was selected as a fellow in the Swedish Wallenberg Program in Molecular Medicine after a competitive recruitment process, joining Lund University as a top candidate in the field of haematopoiesis.
The transition of moving to Sweden was challenging. Particularly in the first two years, when the focus was on building the lab and establishing a strong research culture. Fortunately, Filipe’s dedicated team – one postdoc and four PhD students – followed him to Lund, and their support was crucial in shaping the lab’s direction.
Empowering future talent
While committed to significantly advancing his field, Professor Pereira is also recognised for his dedication to mentoring the next generation of scientists and biotech leaders.
He has mentored and supervised more than 30 researchers, including PhD students and postdoctoral fellows, many of whom have become successful scientists both in academia and industry.
Filipe emphasises the importance of mentorship and time investment in developing researchers. He believes that by dedicating time to students, discussing their challenges, and guiding them through problem-solving, they can grow into key contributors to the project. While some students may start as less experienced, with proper support, they can become invaluable assets.
Filipe spoke about how he actively encourages his team to attend meetings and network with others in the field to build confidence and broaden their understanding. He also likes to nominate his students for awards and motivates them to apply, helping them gain recognition for their work.
When you dedicate time to people, listen to their challenges, and offer guidance, it helps them grow. This process takes time, but with the right support, someone who may start as inexperienced can eventually become a true gem, even if they’re still in the early stages of development. That's one of the ways I support them.
Forging ahead with clear vision
Today, Filipe’s focus is on reprogramming immune cells to develop new immunotherapies for cancers that evade current treatments.
The real kick-starter for me was ten years ago, with the success of immune checkpoint blockade in immunotherapy. It sparked an idea in me. In over 80 different immune cells we have in our body, only macrophages had been reprogrammed. I saw a huge opportunity to explore the potential of reprogramming other immune cells to develop new immunotherapy strategies. No one was exploring them.
His research aims to revolutionise cancer treatment by developing therapies that reprogram cancer cells into immune-boosting dendritic cells. This approach helps to stop cancer cells from hiding from the immune system and, instead, triggers an immune response against tumour mutations.
“This could be a game-changer for cancers that are resistant to existing therapies, particularly head and neck cancers and microsatellite-stable colorectal cancer”.
By combining reprogramming with immune checkpoint inhibitors, Filipe hopes to make immune therapies more effective, expanding their impact beyond current limitations.
A new challenge
Looking forward, he sees the potential of this reprogramming platform to treat not just cancer, but also autoimmune diseases, organ rejection, and infections. The reprogramming of immune cells could eventually lead to a new wave of personalised, scalable therapies for a range of serious conditions.
“At the moment, therapy is the same for everyone, but the issue lies in the fact that everyone acquires different mutations. Even in the same patient, as the cancer evolves, different mutations accumulate. For example, with melanoma 60% of the patients respond to treatment, which is fantastic, but it leaves the other 40% without any solution.”
“By combining immune checkpoint blockade, which removes the brakes on killer lymphocytes, with enhanced tumour antigen presentation, as shown in our studies, we can dramatically increase the number of mice cured. It’s where we can make a difference.”
Ultimately, I would like to make a difference to patients, and I can see we are getting closer to this than ever before. And I am excited about that prospect. It would be the most fantastic outcome to come out of all the work that we have put in.
Overcoming obstacles
One of Filipe’s greatest challenges in turning his groundbreaking research into clinical therapies has been securing the substantial funding required for translation of his findings – around €50 million.
To tackle this, he co-founded Asgard Therapeutics with two key team members, aiming to raise the funds needed for large-scale manufacturing and clinical trials. Their ambitious goal is to bring a revolutionary gene therapy product to patients by 2027.
Since its inception, Asgard has raised €36 million in seed and Series A funding, attracting major investors like Johnson & Johnson Innovation, RV Invest, Novo Holdings, Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, and Industrifonden. This impressive backing underscores the potential of their transformative approach to medicine.
Filipe credits three key principles for successfully securing this funding: confidence in the uniqueness of the idea, securing intellectual property early on, and building the right team to attract investors. With support from Lund University Innovation, the team structured the company and embarked on an extensive pitching process, holding around 150 meetings to secure initial funding. The first investor's commitment created momentum, drawing in others.
While the process has been long and challenging, the funding is critical to advancing their research to clinical trials and ultimately changing the future of cancer treatment. Filipe is proud of what they achieved together in their partnership.
A moment of reflection
When he heard he was a recipient of the award, Filipe shared that he felt truly honoured.
Looking back, you realise how important it is where you train for your growth as a scientist. My time at Imperial was really critical for me as a scientist. It was the first time I started working outside of my home country. It was where I learned how to think as a scientist, to be rigorous, and to start asking the right questions.
“Even now,” Filipe confesses, “I still find myself asking ‘how would Mandy do this?’”
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