Francis Kim, MD, Changing Care for Autoimmune Diseases

Francis S. Kim, MD, has made significant contributions to medical research and clinical care for adult and pediatric patients with autoimmune diseases. His dedication to the profession for the past 23 years has earned him recognition as a 2024 Marquis Who’s Who Top Doctor.

Marquis Who’s Who selects candidates with the highest honors in their fields. Dr. Kim has earned the title of Marquis Who’s Who Top Doctor for his unique combination of clinical expertise, scientific interest, and consistent patient care that sets the highest standards for medical care.

Problems in Autoimmune Diseases

Autoimmune diseases are conditions in which the body’s immune system mistakenly destroys healthy cells in the body, such as inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, type 1 diabetes, and multiple sclerosis. The disease is severe, often begins in childhood, and requires lifelong immunity to control symptoms. However, there is currently no cure, and only a small percentage of patients can achieve clinical remission with the available drugs. This leads to lower life expectancy and higher mortality in both children and adults.

Dr. Kim recognizes that children are resilient, and has always felt the importance of helping people with chronic illnesses and frailty to live healthy and active lives. He has done this through evidence-based health care, scientific research aimed at better understanding the underlying mechanisms of disease, and a commitment to developing new treatments to address patient needs.

The Journey to Wellness: Origins and Early Influences

Before studying medicine, Dr. Kim was very interested in science. His first successful experience was working as a high school student in the neuroscience research laboratory of Dr. Steven Pfeiffer and Rashmi Bansal at the University of Connecticut Health Center, looked to understand what drives the differentiation of central nervous system cells called oligodendrocytes. These cells form the myelin sheaths that normally help send nerve messages quickly through the body and are attacked by the immune system in multiple sclerosis.

Fascinated by the emerging field of stem cell research, Dr. Kim then completed his undergraduate studies in the laboratory of Dr. Douglas Melton is pursuing an AB in biology from Harvard University, where he researched how to re-establish normal pancreas growth. reprogramming stem cells to become insulin-producing beta cells that are destroyed in type 1 diabetes.

Although it was an opportunity to work with the pioneers who discovered how to create pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), Dr. Kim was almost surprised: even scientists were able to create enough beta cells in a dish to return to the patient. With type 1 diabetes, can the patient’s immune system still attack and destroy the cells?

A growing interest in autoimmunity and the immune system led Dr. Kim went to the blood cell research laboratory of Dr. Amy Wagers, also at Harvard University, where she completed a master’s degree researching the proliferation and proliferation of hematopoietic stem cells that grow in whole cells. the immune system, including B and T lymphocytes in autoimmune diseases. While there, he also led the laboratory’s participation in the Immunological Genome Project (ImmGen), a group of immunologists and computational scientists whose goal is to profile the immune system of mice in health and disease.

In accordance with what he researched about science, Dr. Kim wanted to know about the patient’s condition and how to help them with the current medicine. Dr. Kim received her MD from Boston University School of Medicine, after which she completed a residency in pediatrics at Tufts Medical Center (formerly the Floating Hospital for Children) and a clinical fellowship in pediatric gastroenterology and hepatology at the University of California San Francisco. (UCSF) Benioff Children’s Hospital. He also completed a postdoctoral research fellowship at UCSF, supported by an NIH T32 training grant in the laboratory of Dr. Averil Ma, where he investigated the role of A20/Tnfaip3 in the regulation of intestinal and liver homeostasis and its use in autoimmune diseases of the stomach.

Towards the end of his fellowship, Dr. Kim realized that she could have a significant impact by combining her scientific and clinical expertise to help develop new treatments in the biopharmaceutical industry. In 2022, he transitioned to partner as director of medical development at Sonoma Biotherapeutics, a medical biotechnology company founded by pioneering immunologists and T cell (Treg) regulatory experts whose goal was to reverse autoimmune disease and inflammation through therapeutics. which strengthens the immune system. There, he helped design and conduct the first clinical trials of a novel chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) Treg drug for the treatment of patients with autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and hidradenitis suppurativa, as well as contributing to the first discussions on the diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease. disease in an ongoing partnership with Regeneron Pharmaceuticals.

Nearly three years after joining Sonoma Biotherapeutics, these early experiences have led Dr. Kim will continue to improve and learn more about how to bring new treatments such as CAR T cell therapy to patients with autoimmune diseases.

Leadership at Kyverna Therapeutics

For at least two years, Dr. Kim has served as global chief medical officer of Kyverna Therapeutics, a clinical and publicly traded biotechnology company focused on bringing life-changing treatments to patients with autoimmune diseases. In this position, he led two international trials of next-generation CD19-cell CAR T cell therapy in refractory lupus nephritis, which required careful planning, internal and external collaboration, extensive consultation with health authorities and regulatory agencies, and site management to conduct a medical examination.

Dr. Kim emphasizes the importance of teamwork and good leadership. He is proud to work with an intelligent and diverse team that seeks to better understand the biology behind autoimmune diseases and is inspired by patients every day. She is driven by authenticity, staying true to the “why,” courage, and gratitude, which have guided her in her professional and personal life.

Looking Ahead

In the next five years, Dr. Kim hopes to lead the team to successfully develop safe and effective therapies that will change the paradigm of autoimmune disease treatment and significantly improve patient quality of life. He finds the work challenging but undoubtedly exciting and is motivated to contribute to the world of science and medicine.

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