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Simrit Parmar, MS

Simrit Parmar
Simrit Parmar, MS

Professor

Contact

Microbial Pathogenesis & Immunology
8447 John Sharp Pkwy
Bryan, TX 77807-3260

Biography

Dr. Simrit Parmar is founder of Cellenkos Inc., a clinical stage biotech company focused on developing allogeneic T regulatory cell therapy products for treatment of patients with autoimmune diseases and inflammatory disorders. Dr Parmar received her hematology/ oncology fellowship training at Northwestern University and completed a bone marrow transplant fellowship at UT MD Anderson Cancer Center. In 2006, she joined as faculty at the UT Southwestern Medical Center and Dallas VA Medical Center. In 2009, Dr Parmar went back and joined as faculty at UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas. In her research laboratories, Dr. Parmar developed an allogeneic cord blood-derived regulatory T cell therapy platform. Dr. Parmar published her research findings in peer-reviewed journals and was awarded several peer reviewed grant funding. Dr. Parmar was also the proud recipient of the inaugural R. Lee Clark Fellowship award in 2014. Her research was translated into Phase 1/ 2 trial of 3rd party cord blood regulatory T cells for the prevention of GVHD. Based on her promising translational research, in 2016, the T regulatory cell technology was licensed into the biotech start-up company, Cellenkos Inc., that continued to fund Dr Parmar’s laboratories through a sponsored research agreement.

Since then, Cellenkos Inc has developed a robust pipeline, with four clinical products that have treated 75+ patients across different disease indications: i) Phase 1 trial of CK0801 for treatment of bone marrow failure, ii) Randomized, placebo control, double-blinded, multicenter trial of CK0802 for treatment of COVID-19 ARDS, iii) Randomized, placebo control, double-blinded, multicenter trial of CK0803 for treatment of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and iv) Phase 1b trial of CK0804 as add-on therapy to ruxolitinib for the treatment of myelofibrosis.

Dr. Parmar is one of the founding members of the Asia Pacific Hematology Consortium, which focuses on advancing the field of hematology/oncology through continued education, collaboration, and fostering innovations. She also chaired the radiation injury treatment network (RITN) committee at MD Anderson Cancer Center and served on the board of the Global Affairs Committee for the Foundation for Accreditation of Cellular Therapy (FACT).

Education and Training

  • Dayanand Medical College and Hospital, MBBS, Medicine, Surgery, Midwifery, 1998
  • Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, MS, Clinical Investigation, 2004

Professional Certifications

  • Research Internship, Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi, India, 1/1997-3/1998
  • Clinical Residency, Internal Medicine, University of Illinois/Michael Reese Hospital, Chicago, IL, Dennis Levinson, 6/1998-7/2001
  • Clinical Fellowship, Hematology Oncology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, William Gradishar, MD, 7/2001-6/2004
  • Clinical Fellowship, Blood and Marrow Transplantation, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, Richard Champlin, MD, 7/2004-5/2005

Representative Publications

  1. Strati P, Ahmed MA, Nastoupil LJ, Feng L, Hagemeister FB, Fayad LE, Rodriguez MA, Samaniego F, Wang M, Westin JR, Lee HJ, Iyer SP, Parmar S, Ahmed S, Nair R, Steiner RE, Noorani M, Flowers CR, Davis RE, Fowler NH, Neelapu SS. Pretreatment SUVmax may influence the clinical benefit of BR over R-CHOP in patients with previously untreated FL. . Leuk Lymphoma 61(6):1-8, 6/2020. e-Pub 1/2020. PMID: 31971032.

  2. Strati P, Nastoupil LJ, Westin J, Fayad LE, Ahmed S, Fowler NH, Hagemeister FB, Lee HJ, Iyer SP, Nair R, Parmar S, Rodriguez MA, Samaniego F, Steiner RE, Wang M, Pinnix CC, Adkins S, Claussen CM, Martinez CS, Hawkins MC, Johnson NA, Singh P, Mistry HE, Horowitz S, George S, Feng L, Kebriaei P, Shpall EJ, Neelapu SS, Tummala S, Chi TL. Clinical and radiologic correlates of neurotoxicity after axicabtagene ciloleucel in large B-cell lymphoma. Blood Adv 4(16):3943-3951, 8/2020. PMCID: PMC7448589.

  3. Glober G, Gunther J, Fang P, Milgrom S, Korivi BR, Jensen CT, Wagner-Bartak NA, Ahmed S, Lee HJ, Nair R, Steiner R, Parmar S, Iyer S, Westin J, Fayad L, Rodriguez MA, Neelapu S, Nastoupil L, Flowers CR, Dabaja BS, Pinnix CC. Imaging Surveillance of Limited-stage Classic Hodgkin Lymphoma Patients After PET-CT-documented First Remission. Clin Lymphoma Myeloma Leuk 8:533-541, 8/2020.

  4. Pinnix CC, Gunther JR, Fang P, Bankston ME, Milgrom SA, Boyce D, Lee HJ, Nair R, Steiner R, Strati P, Ahmed S, Iyer SP, Westin J, Parmar S, Rodriguez MA, Nastoupil L, Neelapu S, Flowers C, Dabaja BS. Assessment of Radiation Doses Delivered to Organs at Risk Among Patients With Early-Stage Favorable Hodgkin Lymphoma Treated With Contemporary Radiation Therapy. JAMA Netw Open 3(9):e2013935, 9/2020. e-Pub 9/2020. PMID: 32990738.

  5. Strati P, Ahmed S, Furqan F, Fayad LE, Lee HJ, Iyer SP, Nair R, Nastoupil L, Parmar S, Rodriguez MA, Samaniego F, Steiner RE, Wang ML, Pinnix CC, Horowitz SB, Feng L, Sun R, Claussen CM, Hawkins M, Johnson N, Singh P, Mistry H, Johncy S, Adkins S, Kebriaei P, Shpall EJ, Green MR, Flowers C, Westin J, Neelapu SS. Prognostic Impact of Corticosteroids on Efficacy of Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell Therapy in Large B-cell Lymphoma. Blood. e-Pub 2/2021. PMID: 33534891.

  6. Srour SA, Saliba RM, Bashir Q, Popat UR, Ahmed S, Mehta RS, Delgado R, Rondon G, Parmar S, Kebriaei P, Hosing C, Manasanch EE, Lee HC, Patel KK, Orlowski RZ, Shpall E, Champlin RE, Qazilbash MH, Nieto Y. Influence of Overlapping Genetic Abnormalities on Treatment Outcomes of Multiple Myeloma. Transplant Cell Ther 27(3):243.e1-243.e6, 3/2021. e-Pub 12/2020. PMID: 33781521.

  7. Ahmed S, Bashir Q, Bassett R, Poon MC, Valdez B, Konoplev S, Alousi AM, Andersson BS, Ciurea S, Hosing C, Jones R, Kebriaei P, Khouri I, Kim S, Nieto Y, Olson A, Oran B, Parmar S, Qazilbash MH, Rezvani K, Shah N, Shpall EJ, Champlin R, Popat U. Eltrombopag for Post-Transplantation Thrombocytopenia: Results of Phase II Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial. Transplant Cell Ther 27(5):430.e1-430.e7, 5/2021. e-Pub 2/2021. PMID: 33965187.

  8. Greenbaum U, Strati P, Saliba RM, Torres J, Rondon G, Nieto Y, Hosing C, Srour SA, Westin J, Fayad LE, Lee HJ, Iyer SP, Nair R, Nastoupil LJ, Parmar S, Rodriguez MA, Samaniego F, Steiner RE, Wang M, Pinnix CC, Flowers CR, Tummala S, Ramdial JL, Yalniz FF, Hawkins M, Rezvani K, Champlin RE, Shpall EJ, Neelapu SS, Kebriaei P, Ahmed S. CRP and ferritin in addition to the EASIX score predict CAR-T-related toxicity. Blood Adv 5(14):2799-2806, 7/2021. PMCID: PMC8341350.

  9. Olson AL, Saliba RM, Oran B, Chen J, Alousi A, Ahmed S, Bashir Q, Ciurea SO, Hosing C, Seon Im J, Kebriaei P, Khouri IF, Mehta R, Nieto Y, Parmar S, Rezvani K, Shah N, Shpall E, Srour SA, Qazilbash M, Andersson BS, Champlin R, Popat UR. Cytogenetics and Blast Count Determine Transplant Outcomes in Patients with Active Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Acta Haematol 144(1):74-81, 2021. e-Pub 6/2020. PMID: 32604096.

  10. Nieto Y, Gruschkus S, Valdez BC, Jones RB, Anderlini P, Hosing C, Popat U, Qazilbash M, Kebriaei P, Alousi A, Saini N, Srour S, Rezvani K, Ramdial J, Barnett M, Gulbis A, Shigle TL, Ahmed S, Iyer S, Lee H, Nair R, Parmar S, Steiner R, Dabaja B, Pinnix C, Gunther J, Cuglievan B, Mahadeo K, Khazal S, Chuang H, Champlin R, Shpall EJ, Andersson BS. Improved outcomes of high-risk relapsed Hodgkin lymphoma patients after high-dose chemotherapy: a 15-year analysis. Haematologica 107(4):899-908, 4/2022. e-Pub 4/2022. PMCID: PMC8968895.

  11. Li L, Muftuoglu M, Liang S, Basyal M, Lv J, Akdogan ME, Chen K, Andreeff M, Flowers CR, Parmar S. In-depth analysis of SARS-CoV-2-specific T cells reveals diverse differentiation hierarchies in vaccinated individuals. JCI Insight 7(7), 4/2022. e-Pub 4/2022. PMID: 35230977.

  12. Han G, Deng Q, Marques-Piubelli ML, Dai E, Dang M, Ma MCJ, Li X, Yang H, Henderson J, Kudryashova O, Meerson M, Isaev S, Kotlov N, Nomie KJ, Bagaev A, Parra ER, Solis Soto LM, Parmar S, Hagemeister FB, Ahmed S, Iyer SP, Samaniego F, Steiner R, Fayad L, Lee H, Fowler NH, Flowers CR, Strati P, Westin JR, Neelapu SS, Nastoupil LJ, Vega F, Wang L, Green MR. Follicular lymphoma microenvironment characteristics associated with tumor cell mutations and MHC class II expression. Blood Cancer Discov. e-Pub 6/2022. PMID: 35687817.

  13. Cherng HJ, Sun R, Sugg B, Irwin R, Yang H, Le CC, Deng Q, Fayad L, Fowler NH, Parmar S, Steiner R, Hagemeister F, Nair R, Lee HJ, Rodriguez M, Samaniego F, Iyer SP, Flowers CR, Wang L, Nastoupil LJ, Neelapu SS, Ahmed S, Strati P, Green MR, Westin J. Risk assessment with low pass whole genome sequencing of cell free DNA before CD19 CAR T-cells for large B-cell lymphoma. Blood 140(5):504-515, 8/2022. e-Pub 5/2022. PMID: 35512184.

  14. Zeng K, Huang M, Lyu MA, Khoury JD, Ahmed S, Patel KK, Dropulic B, Reese-Koc J, Caimi PF, Sadeghi T, Lima M, Flowers CR, Parmar S. Adjunct Therapy with T Regulatory Cells Decreases Inflammation and Preserves the Anti-Tumor Activity of CAR T Cells. Cells 12(14), 7/2023. e-Pub 7/2023. PMCID: PMC10377823.

  15. Gladstone DE, D'Alessio F, Howard C, Lyu MA, Mock JR, Gibbs KW, Abrams D, Huang M, Zeng K, Herlihy JP, Castillo ST, Bassett R, Sadeghi T, Parmar S, Flowers CR, Mukherjee S, Schoenfeld D, Thall PF, Slutsky AS. Randomized, Double Blinded, Placebo Controlled Trial of Allogeneic Cord Blood T-Regulatory Cell for Treatment of COVID-19 ARDS. Blood Adv 7(13):3075-3079, 7/2023. e-Pub 3/2023. PMCID: PMC10043947.

  16. Lyu MA, Tang X, Khoury JD, Raso MG, Huang M, Zeng K, Nishimoto M, Ma H, Sadeghi T, Flowers CR, Parmar S. Allogeneic cord blood regulatory T cells decrease dsDNA antibody and improve albuminuria in systemic lupus erythematosus. Front Immunol. 2023 Sep 5;14:1217121. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1217121. eCollection 2023.

  17. Lyu MA, Huang M, Zeng K, Li L, Khoury JD, Nishimoto M, Ma H, Sadeghi T, Mukherjee S, Slutsky AS, Flowers CR, Parmar S. Allogeneic cord blood regulatory T cells can resolve lung inflammation. Cytotherapy. 2023 Mar;25(3):245-253. doi: 10.1016/j.jcyt.2022.10.009.

  18. Zeng K, Huang M, Lyu MA, Khoury JD, Ahmed S, Patel KK, Dropulić B, Reese-Koc J, Caimi PF, Sadeghi T, Lima M, Flowers CR, Parmar S. Adjunct Therapy with T Regulatory Cells Decreases Inflammation and Preserves the Anti-Tumor Activity of CAR T Cells. Cells. 2023 Jul 18;12(14):1880. doi: 10.3390/cells12141880.

  19. Lyu MA, Tang X, Khoury JD, Raso MG, Huang M, Zeng K, Nishimoto M, Ma H, Sadeghi T, Flowers CR, Parmar S. Allogeneic cord blood regulatory T cells decrease dsDNA antibody and improve albuminuria in systemic lupus erythematosus. Front Immunol. 2023 Sep 5;14:1217121. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1217121. eCollection 2023.PMID: 37736101

  20. Kadia TM, Huang M, Pemmaraju N, Abbas HA, Ly C, Masarova L, Yilmaz M, Lyu MA, Zeng K, Sadeghi T, Cook R, DiNardo CD, Daver N, Issa GC, Jabbour E, Borthakur G, Jain N, Garcia-Manero G, Parmar S, Flowers C, Kantarjian H, Verstovsek S. Phase 1 Study of CK0801 in Treatment of Bone Marrow Failure Syndromes. NEJM Evid. 2024 Jun;3(6):EVIDoa2300362. doi: 10.1056/EVIDoa2300362.

  21. Huang M, Ke Z, Lyu MA, Masarova L, Sadeghi T, Flowers CR, Parmar S. CXCR4-enriched T regulatory cells preferentially home to bone marrow and resolve inflammation. iScience. 2024 Aug 27;27(9):110830. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.110830. eCollection 2024 Sep 20.PMID: 39314243