Eric Butz, PhD

Eric Butz brings more than 25 years of innovative research and team leadership in academic and biotechnology settings. Dr. Butz received his Ph.D. in Microbiology at the University of Minnesota where he worked on acute virus infection-induced immune suppression.  At the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at the University of Washington, he made seminal observations on the nature and magnitude of anti-viral CD8 T cells responses to acute virus infections working in the lab of Michael Bevan. Thereafter, he joined Immunex where his work on T-cell priming and T cell/dendritic cell interactions and dendritic cell biology led to several patents.  After Immunex was acquired by Amgen, he joined the Inflammation group, where he led projects ranging from target discovery and validation through phase II clinical development, including AMG 714, a first in class IL-15-neutralizing antibody.  His research employed a wide variety of in vivo and in vitro techniques and gene expression analysis systems and was focused largely on inflammatory diseases, including work on immuno-oncology strategies.  He has worked with modalities including antibodies, soluble receptors, small molecules, antibody-drug conjugates and novel strategies to alter cytokine-receptor interactions and to improve cell specific drug targeting.  

In 2014 he founded Cascade Immunobiology, LLC, a biotechnology consulting service.  He is also the Head of Biomarkers and a consulting immunologist for Celimmune in their planning and execution of a first of its kind phase II clinical trial the treatment of type II refractory celiac disease, an in situ intestinal T cell lymphoma. He is also an Affiliate Associate Professor in the University of Washington Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, where he serves as an external consultant, and is an affiliate member of the Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease.