Paul Leonard, Ph.d.

Biography

 Paul Leonard, Ph.D. is Director of In Vitro Assay Development at Vaccinogen and the inventor of the DiCAST high-throughput, single-cell analysis platform, which Vaccinogen acquired rights to utilize for two years in an exclusive option agreement with Dublin City University (DCU). As Director of In Vitro Assay Development, Dr. Leonard is responsible for leading Vaccinogen’s operations in Ireland and spearheading the implementation of DiCAST as the Company expands its HuMab program to target potential B-cell derived cancer vaccines for multiple oncology indications. An entrepreneurial scientist, serial inventor and the current recipient of the Irish Laboratory Awards ‘2014 Innovation of the Year’ for his work on the DiCAST platform, Dr. Leonard spent the past 12 years with DCU in a number or roles, most recently serving as a principal investigator in translational research at the University’s Biomedical Diagnostics Institute. During his tenure at DCU, Dr. Leonard built and led the scientific team that invented DiCAST. Dr. Leonard is a reviewer for international journals and an expert assessor for a number of international funding agencies including the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, the Technology Strategy Board in the UK and Horizon 2020. He has a proven publication and grant application record and has received numerous invitations to contribute to international conferences and workshops in the US, Canada, China and Europe. Dr. Leonard received his Ph.D. in 2003 from DCU where he developed antibody-based biosensor technologies for the detection of bacterial contamination in food. From 2003 to 2009 he expanded his research interests in the areas of antibody engineering, immunodiagnostics, high throughput screening and assay design. During this time, he helped establish an automated antibody screening facility worth more than €1.3 million for the high throughput selection and ranking of target specific antibodies.. In addition to his academic credentials, Dr. Leonard has valuable experience founding and managing biotechnology companies. Prior to joining Vaccinogen, Dr. Leonard was also co-founder and CEO of Monart Biosciences Ltd and co-founder and CSO of Innovamab Ltd, both of which emanated from DCU-based research led by Dr. Leonard.  

Research Interest

Multiple Oncology indications.