Dr. Adrian Bot, a renowned American scientist and founder of Capstan Therapeutics, has joined the Board of Directors at Immuthera, a U.S.-based subsidiary of PolTREG S.A., to support the commercialization of groundbreaking cell and gene therapies developed by PolTREG.
Immuthera is a U.S.-incorporated company under PolTREG S.A., a leader in innovative immunotherapies focused on regulatory T cell (TREG) technologies. Dr. Bot will also serve as a scientific advisor to PolTREG S.A., lending his extensive experience in the development and commercialization of novel cell and gene therapies.
With 27 years of experience in the American biopharmaceutical industry, Dr. Bot’s background spans drug discovery, preclinical and clinical research, translational medicine, and product lifecycle management in a commercial context. He has dedicated over half of his career to the development of CAR-T cell therapies.
Dr. Bot was the founder, Chief Scientific Officer (CSO), and Vice President of R&D at Capstan Therapeutics, where he led the development of in vivo mRNA-based CAR-T therapies. He helped secure $165 million in funding for Capstan and later participated in the sale of the company to AbbVie for $2.1 billion in 2025.
He also held executive positions at Kite Pharma, where he contributed to the success of the CAR-T cancer therapies Yescarta and Tecartus. Kite Pharma was acquired by Gilead Sciences for $11.9 billion in 2017.
Dr. Adrian Bot, M.D., Ph.D., earned his medical degree from the University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Timișoara, Romania, in 1993 and completed his PhD in biomedical sciences at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York in 1998. He was also a researcher at the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, and is the author or co-author of more than 100 scientific publications.
In addition to his scientific expertise and extensive network in fields relevant to PolTREG and Immuthera, Dr. Bot brings unique experience in the development and commercialization of breakthrough therapies integrating gene and cell technologies. He has participated in several fundraising rounds and two major corporate acquisitions, serving as CSO in both cases. Under his leadership, Capstan raised $165 million in financing before being acquired by AbbVie for $2.1 billion in 2025. Capstan’s key assets included the in vivo CAR-T therapy candidate CPTX2309 and a patented lipid nanoparticle platform used for mRNA delivery and cell engineering.
At Kite Pharma, Dr. Bot played a key role in the scientific leadership and translational development of Yescarta® and Tecartus®, two pioneering autologous CAR-T therapies for the treatment of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and other indications. Yescarta® was the second CAR-T therapy approved by the FDA and the first for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Shortly before its approval, Kite was acquired by Gilead Sciences for $11.9 billion in 2017.
“PolTREG is a global leader in developing T regulatory cell-based products, with over 12 years of clinical experience treating more than 100 patients. This data set in autoimmune diseases represents a unique advantage in our rapidly evolving field. It has formed the basis for designing a range of products and technologies such as CAR-modified Treg cells and multi-engineered allogeneic CAR-Tregs. Innovative therapies based on inducing and enhancing immunoregulatory mechanisms are essential for effectively treating complex autoimmune diseases. I am excited to support Immuthera and PolTREG in advancing and commercializing these breakthrough Treg-based therapies for patients in need. We are at a turning point for this field, and I have tremendous confidence in the PolTREG team led by Professor Piotr Trzonkowski, who is well-positioned for U.S. market expansion,” said Dr. Adrian Bot.
“Dr. Bot is a recognized leader in the fast-evolving fields of cell and gene therapies. We are thrilled to have such a distinguished expert join our team. He has twice helped lead the development of breakthrough innovations in cell engineering, including CAR-T therapies and in vivo technologies. These innovations have been validated in the market through major acquisitions of Kite Pharma and Capstan by industry leaders. We share the belief that T regulatory cells, whose discovery was recently awarded the Nobel Prize, represent the next major breakthrough for cell therapies targeting autoimmune and other diseases. Dr. Bot’s experience and innovative scientific and business insights will be invaluable in our path toward the commercialization of Treg-based therapies. We look forward to his input and guidance in bringing our therapies to the U.S. market and further developing next-generation Treg technologies,” said Prof. Piotr Trzonkowski, founder and CEO of PolTREG S.A.
PolTREG is intensifying its presence in the U.S. market. In recent months, it has established Immuthera’s Scientific Advisory Board, composed of leading American researchers. PolTREG has also partnered with Noble Capital Markets Inc., an American investment bank, and Kinexum Services LLC, which supports PolTREG’s TREG therapy registration process in the United States. Earlier this year, PolTREG also began collaborating with Swiss company Antion Biosciences to develop next-generation allogeneic Treg therapies.
