Derrick Rossi

Rossi was born in Toronto as the youngest of five children of a Maltese immigrant family.{{ cite news |author=Joe O'Connor |url=https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/heroes-of-the-pandemic-meet-the-canadian-hockey-dad-behind-covid-19-vaccine-developer-moderna |title=Meet the Canadian hockey dad behind COVID-19 vaccine developer Moderna |work=nationalpost.com |date=28 May 2020| access-date =6 March 2021}} His father Fred worked in auto body shops for 50 years{{cite news |title=How Dad Made a Difference |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/268442399/?terms=Derrick%2BRossi |access-date=9 August 2018 |work=The Orlando Sentinel |date=16 June 2011 |page=D1 |url-access=subscription}} and his mother Agnes co-owned a Maltese bakery.

Rossi attended the Dr. Norman Bethune High School in Scarborough where he early discovered his passion for molecular biology. He then did his undergraduate and master's degrees in molecular genetics at the University of Toronto.{{cite web |author= Rahul Kalvapalle |url=https://www.utoronto.ca/news/lab-saving-lives-moderna-co-founder-derrick-rossi-becoming-serial-entrepreneur |title=From the lab to saving lives: Moderna co-founder Derrick Rossi on becoming a serial entrepreneur |work=utoronto.ca |date=22 February 2021 | access-date =6 March 2021}} He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Helsinki in 2003 and held a post-doc position from 2003 to 2007 at Stanford University in Irving Weissman’s lab.{{cite web |url=https://www.childrenshospital.org/research/researchers/r/derrick-rossi |title=About the researcher |work=harvard.edu |date= |access-date=6 March 2021 |archive-date=9 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209104526/https://www.childrenshospital.org/research/researchers/r/derrick-rossi |url-status=dead }}

Rossi in 2007{{cite news|last=Anderson|first=Scott|date=9 June 2023|title=Derrick Rossi, the stem cell scientist who co-founded Moderna, receives honorary degree|url=https://www.utoronto.ca/news/derrick-rossi-stem-cell-scientist-who-co-founded-moderna-receives-honorary-degree|work=U of T News|publisher=University of Toronto|access-date=11 February 2025}} was appointed Associate Professor at the Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology Department at Harvard Medical School and Harvard University.{{cite web|title=Derrick Rossi, PhD|url=https://nyscf.org/people/derrick-rossi-phd/|publisher=NYSCF|access-date=6 March 2021}} At the same time he was a principal faculty member of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute and an investigator at the Immune Disease Institute (IDI),{{cite web|title=Derrick J Rossi's scientific contributionswhile affiliated with Harvard University (Cambridge, United States) and other places|url=https://www.researchgate.net/scientific-contributions/39287600_Derrick_J_Rossi|publisher=Research Gate|access-date=26 February 2018}} as well as in the Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine at the Children’s Hospital Boston.{{cite web|title=Derrick J. Rossi, Ph.D.|url=http://www.vorbiopharma.com/derrick-rossi/|publisher=VOR Biopharma|access-date=26 February 2018|archive-date=26 February 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180226152011/http://www.vorbiopharma.com/derrick-rossi/|url-status=dead}}

Moderna was founded in 2010, based on discovery that pluripotent stem cells can be transformed and reprogrammed.{{cite news |last1=Kutz |first1=Erin |title=ModeRNA, Stealth Startup Backed By Flagship, Unveils New Way to Make Stem Cells |url=https://xconomy.com/boston/2010/10/04/moderna-stealth-startup-backed-by-flagship-unveils-new-way-to-make-stem-cells/ |publisher=Xconomy, Inc |date=4 October 2010}}{{cite web|author=Lawrence Goodman| url=https://www.brandeis.edu/now/2021/february/rosenstiel-ceremony-vaccine.html |title=Rosenstiel Award winners celebrated for life-saving scientific breakthroughs |work=brandeis.edu |date=10 February 2021 |access-date=6 March 2021}} Time magazine cited this pluripotent discovery as one of the top ten medical breakthroughs of the year.{{cite web|title=Children's researcher honored by TIME Magazine|url=https://thriving.childrenshospital.org/childrens-researcher-honnored-by-time-magazine/|publisher=Thriving|access-date=26 February 2018|archive-date=26 February 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180226211843/https://thriving.childrenshospital.org/childrens-researcher-honnored-by-time-magazine/|url-status=dead}}

In 2013 Rossi, Chien and their team reported that they "were able to improve heart function in mice and enhance their long-term survival with a "redirection of their [stem cell] differentiation toward cardiovascular cell types" in a significant step towards regenerative therapeutics for Moderna.{{cite news |last1=Timmerman |first1=Luke |title=Moderna Vacuums Up Another $110M to Make Messenger RNA Drugs |url=https://xconomy.com/boston/2013/11/20/moderna-vacuums-another-110m-make-messenger-rna-drugs/ |publisher=Xconomy, Inc |date=20 November 2013}}{{Cite Q|Q30580723}} In the same year and on the strength of the same paper Moderna was able to partner with AstraZeneca in exchange for $240 million "in upfront cash (plus much more in potential milestone payments)", and then received from other investors $110 million.

In 2014 Rossi retired from his functions at the board and as a scientific advisor at Moderna.

In 2015 Rossi was scientific co-founder of Intellia Therapeutics. In 2016 Rossi co-founded Magenta Therapeutics. Rossi was involved in the foundation of Stelexis Therapeutics in 2017,{{cite news|date=7 January 2019|title=Stelexis Therapeutics Closes $43M in Series A Funding|url=https://www.finsmes.com/2019/01/stelexis-therapeutics-closes-43m-in-series-a-funding.html|work=FinSMEs|access-date=11 February 2025}} which develops new medication for treating cancerous stem cells.{{cite news |last1=Servick |first1=Kelly |title=This mysterious $2 billion biotech is revealing the secrets behind its new drugs and vaccines |url=https://www.science.org/content/article/mysterious-2-billion-biotech-revealing-secrets-behind-its-new-drugs-and-vaccines |access-date=9 August 2018 |work=Science |date=1 February 2017 |language=en}}

In 2018 Rossi retired from all of his Harvard positions in order to focus on his activities as an entrepreneur. Rossi served as the interim CEO of the New York Stem Cell Foundation from October 2022 to January 2024. Rossi is also CEO of Convelo Therapeutics.{{Cite web|url=https://nyscf.org/resources/the-science-of-startups-drs-derrick-rossi-and-paul-tesar-discuss-how-their-biotechs-are-bringing-stem-cell-research-to-patients/|title=The Science of Startups: Drs. Derrick Rossi and Paul Tesar Discuss How Their Biotechs Are Bringing Stem Cell Research to Patients|access-date=Dec 10, 2020}}

Rossi develops and promotes new therapies using biotechnological methods thus contributing to novel approaches in regenerative medicine. His research focussed on different aspects of stem cell biology. In order to avoid ethical issues related to the use and exploitation of human stem cells, Rossi based his developments on the results of Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman on mRNA. He succeeded in finding investors for his plans to transfer these findings into new medications and vaccinations by founding Moderna.{{cite news |author=Damian Garde, Jonathan Saltzman |url=https://www.statnews.com/2020/11/10/the-story-of-mrna-how-a-once-dismissed-idea-became-a-leading-technology-in-the-covid-vaccine-race/ |title=The story of mRNA: How a once-dismissed idea became a leading technology in the Covid vaccine race |work=statnews.com |date=10 November 2020 |access-date=6 March 2021}}

Rossi is on record as writing of his synthetic modified mRNA: "because our technology is RNA based, it completely eliminates the risk of genomic integration and insertional mutagenesis inherent to all DNA-based methodologies."{{Cite Q|Q28131663}}

In 2021 he was awarded the Princess of Asturias Award in the category "Scientific Research".{{Cite web|url=https://www.fpa.es/en/princess-of-asturias-awards/laureates/2021-katalin-kariko-drew-weissman-philip-felgner-ugur-sahin-ozlem-tureci-derrick-rossi-and-sarah-gilbert.html?especifica=0&idCategoria=0&anio=2021&especifica=0|title=Katalin Karikó, Drew Weissman, Philip Felgner, Uğur Şahin, Özlem Türeci, Derrick Rossi and Sarah Gilbert - Laureates - Princess of Asturias Awards|first=Developed with webControl CMS by Intermark|last=IT|website=The Princess of Asturias Foundation|accessdate=13 December 2021}}

• {{Cite Q|Q28505636}}
• {{Cite Q|Q28131663}}
• {{Cite Q|Q29616798}}

Rossi is married to Finnish biologist Nina Korsisaari and father of three daughters.{{cite news |author= Courtney Shea |url=https://torontolife.com/city/its-likely-well-see-another-pandemic-in-the-next-20-years-the-toronto-scientist-who-invented-the-covid-vaccine-technology-says-we-need-to-prepare-for-the-next-virus/ |title="It's likely we'll see another pandemic in the next 20 years": The Toronto scientist who invented the Covid vaccine technology says we need to prepare for the next virus|work=torontolife.com |date=17 February 2020 | access-date =6 March 2021}}

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• {{ResearchGate|Derrick_J_Rossi_39287600}}
• [https://www.convelotx.com/team Convelo Therapeutics: Team]
• [https://nyscf.org/people/derrick-rossi-phd/ Derrick Rossi, PhD]

{{Princess of Asturias Award for Technical and Scientific Research}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Rossi, Derrick J.}}

Category:Living people

Category:1966 births

Category:21st-century Canadian biologists

Category:Place of birth missing (living people)

Category:University of Toronto alumni

Category:University of Helsinki alumni

Category:Harvard University faculty

Category:Harvard Medical School faculty

Category:Canadian people of Maltese descent

Category:Moderna people