From Lab Bench to Breakthrough: How a UT Mentor-Student Partnership Sparked a Rising East Tennessee Biotech Company

When Trey Fisher, PhD, walked into the vascular biology lab led by Deidra Mountain, PhD, at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine - Knoxville more than a decade ago, he was a graduate student looking for a scientific challenge. He found one, and something more: the beginnings of a partnership that would one day spark a promising East Tennessee biotechnology company.

Today, Dr. Fisher, a Memphis native, three-time UT Knoxville alumnus, and recent UT Knoxville 40 Under 40 honoree, leads Orion Therapeutics as CEO and scientific founder, guiding the Knoxville-based company as it develops a new generation of lipid nanoparticles for RNA-based therapies. And Dr. Mountain, a professor at the College of Medicine - Knoxville and recognized leader in vascular biology research, remains his longtime collaborator and co-inventor of the technology that launched the company.

Their story reflects something uniquely powerful about the University of Tennessee: how mentorship, research excellence, and homegrown talent can intersect to drive innovation with far-reaching impact.

A Discovery Ahead of Its Time

Dr. Mountain still remembers the early conversations she had with Dr. Fisher in her lab. Together, they were working on a delivery challenge central to vascular disease: how to get genetic medicine into tissues safely and reproducibly, without causing inflammation or toxicity commonly seen in nanomedicine.

"We weren't thinking about building a company. We were trying to solve a real biological problem in vascular disease," Dr. Mountain says. "But over time, we discovered that the delivery platform we were developing wasn't tied to one gene or one condition. It could deliver many types of genetic medicines, which meant it could be applied to a wide range of diseases."

Dr. Trey Fisher and Dr. Deidra Mountain have worked together in labs for years, from mentor and student to co-founders of Orion Therapeutics.

Their innovation centered on bio-inspired lipopeptides, molecules designed by combining naturally occurring lipid structures with short peptides known for helping materials enter cells. This hybrid design allows the nanoparticles to form stably and deliver genetic medicines without relying on harsh synthetic components of traditional nanomedicines that overstimulate the immune system. The result is a delivery system that is more biocompatible and better suited for repeated, long-term use in diseases that require ongoing treatment.

Their approach was different and significant, but its true importance came into focus in 2020. "When the mRNA vaccines came out, the whole world suddenly understood the power of RNA," Dr. Fisher says. "We had already been working in that space for years, long before most people realized how transformative these medicines would become."

Two Paths Converge Into One Vision

Despite their shared work, Dr. Mountain and Dr. Fisher always imagined different futures. "I'm an academic researcher," Dr. Mountain says, smiling. "The university is where I belong. Trey was the one who envisioned a path beyond the research lab."

Dr. Fisher discovered during graduate school that he had a talent not only for research but for translating research into real-world solutions. After earning his doctorate, he spent several years in industry before returning to Knoxville with a bold proposition: start a company together to commercialize the technology they co-invented.

"I remember Trey came to meet me in my office. He said, 'I think we really can do this. I want you to help me,'" Dr. Mountain recalls. "Of course, I agreed. I believed in the science, and I believed in him." Orion Therapeutics was born soon after.

A Startup Built on UT's Innovation Ecosystem

"Truly, there would be no Orion without the university."

Dr. Trey Fisher

The company's roots and its accelerating momentum trace directly back to the innovation ecosystem throughout the University of Tennessee System. Orion's core technology was invented at the College of Medicine - Knoxville, where the UT Research Foundation (UTRF) secured the foundational patents and provided early licensing guidance. UTRF later deepened that support by awarding Orion the inaugural investment from its Accelerate Fund.

"Orion Therapeutics is exactly the kind of company the Accelerate Fund was created to support," UTRF President Maha Krishnamurthy says. "Orion demonstrates what's possible when world-class research, entrepreneurial vision, and a supportive innovation ecosystem come together. Through intellectual property strategy, early-stage capital, and hands-on commercialization support, UTRF helps ensure that promising UT innovations have the resources they need to move from the lab to the marketplace. Orion's journey reflects the strength of UT's innovation and entrepreneurship pathway from an exceptional mentor-student partnership to startup formation and growth support, showcasing how UT's innovation can translate into real-world impact for Tennessee and beyond."

UT alumni and academic programs helped shape the company's business foundation, and UT Knoxville's Institute for Advanced Materials and Manufacturing (IAMM) at Cherokee Farm now serves as Orion's research and development home.

"Truly, there would be no Orion without the university," Dr. Fisher says. "UT supported the science. UT supported the intellectual property. UT supported the company. It's been instrumental from the beginning."

That support helped Orion secure highly competitive national funding, including a $275,000 NSF Phase I STTR award and a $1.25 million NSF Phase II STTR grant, both with UT as the academic partner. The Phase II award, a two-year grant supporting IND-enabling studies, positions Orion to move toward future clinical trials. Dr. Fisher calls the UT ecosystem "one of the company's greatest advantages."

Orion is powered by people whose careers began, and continue to grow, within the UT System. In addition to Dr. Fisher and Dr. Mountain, Jennifer Zachry, PhD, the company's director of business development, recently completed her MBA through UT with tuition support from Orion, further strengthening the company's commercialization and strategic capacity. The team also includes Michael McCaman, PhD, an expert with nearly 40 years of pharmaceutical development experience who helped steer CRISPR gene editing therapy into first-in-human trials at Intellia Therapeutics.

Since launching Orion Therapeutics, Dr. Mountain, Dr. Fisher, and their team have patented a platform that allows them develop new RNA therapies for a variety of applications.

"Drs. Mountain and Fisher exemplify the very best of the University of Tennessee - world-class scholarship and the vision to translate discoveries into real-world impact," says Deborah Crawford, PhD, vice chancellor of the UT Knoxville Office of Research, Innovation & Economic Development. "Their partnership reflects the power of collaboration across the UT Health Sciences and UT Knoxville, where shared values, expertise and infrastructure accelerate innovation. Orion Therapeutics is a powerful example of East Tennessee's rapidly maturing entrepreneurial ecosystem, one where homegrown talent, university research, and industry ambition come together to create companies that advance human health while strengthening our region's economy."

Innovation With a Sense of Place

For Dr. Mountain, an East Tennessee native, the journey carries special meaning. "When I first went into biomedical research, I never imagined I'd be able to stay in Knoxville," she says. "There simply weren't opportunities like this here. But over the last decade, the university has changed that."

"I was born and raised in Memphis, and I've spent a lot of time in all the big parts of the state, and Tennessee matters to me," Dr. Fisher says. "We're proud to be an East Tennessee biotech, and proud to be a UT-born company."

The connection is not only historical; it's active, expanding, and mutually reinforcing. Orion maintains sponsored research agreements with UT faculty, including ongoing work in Dr. Mountain's vascular research program at the College of Medicine - Knoxville. Through these partnerships, the company helps train the next generation of scientists, supporting graduate students who gain hands-on experience in translational research and biotech innovation.

"It feels like we're building something bigger than ourselves," Dr. Mountain says. "We're building it for this region, for this university, and for the patients who will one day benefit."

A Model for What Comes Next

For the UT System, Orion represents the power of aligning research excellence, student talent, entrepreneurial vision, and statewide innovation infrastructure. It reflects what is possible when UT discoveries move beyond the laboratory to become new companies, new jobs, and new technologies for Tennessee and beyond.

"The Orion story captures the true power of academic research. When curiosity-driven discovery is paired with mentorship, collaboration, and a commitment to translation, it can change lives," says Jessica Snowden, MD, vice chancellor for Research at UT Health Sciences. "At UT Health Sciences, we believe our greatest impact on human health comes from investing in people and partnerships that allow ideas to move from the lab to the real world. Faculty-student collaborations like this not only advance science, but they also train the next generation of leaders who will carry that impact forward."

And for Dr. Fisher and Dr. Mountain, it remains a story about people - mentor and student, academic and entrepreneur - using their complementary strengths to create something neither could have built alone.

"We believed this technology could help patients," Dr. Mountain says. "But doing the work right here in Knoxville, with UT beside us, makes the journey even more meaningful."