WESTFIELD, N.J., Oct. 6, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Relburn-Metabolomics, Inc. announced the appointment of two highly regarded specialists in liver disease to its Scientific Advisory Board. The new members extend the Board’s expertise as the Company advances its programs in inflammatory diseases. Relburn is focused on the discovery and use of its proprietary small molecules as innovative treatments for NASH and gout. Biographies of the new Board members follow.
Dr. David E. Cohen
Dr. David E. Cohen is the Vincent Astor Distinguished Professor of Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College, and Chief of the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology in the Joan & Sanford I. Weill Department of Medicine.
Dr. Cohen received his M.D. from Harvard Medical School and his Ph.D. from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University. He completed internal medicine residency training, as well as clinical and research fellowships in gastroenterology and hepatology, at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School. Dr. Cohen served as Director of Hepatology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Director of the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology. He was a Professor and the Robert H. Ebert Endowed Chair at Harvard Medical School and a Professor in the Division of Health Sciences at Harvard-Massachusetts Institute of Technology from 2011-2016. He was a faculty member of Harvard Medical School’s graduate program in biological and biomedical sciences from 2005-2016. Previously, Dr. Cohen served as an Associate Professor of Medicine and of Biochemistry in the Marion Bessin Liver Research Center at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
A member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation (ASCI) and the Interurban Clinical Club, Dr. Cohen is an internationally renowned physician-scientist with a major interest in the molecular regulation of hepatic lipid and glucose metabolism. Dr. Cohen is currently the editor of Hepatology, the premier journal in the field.
Dr. Rohit Loomba
Dr. Rohit Loomba is a tenured Professor of Medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology at the University of California, San Diego, and Adjunct Professor in the Division of Epidemiology. A leading expert in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and steatohepatitis (NASH), Dr. Loomba is founding director of the UCSD NAFLD Research Center, as well as founder and principal investigator of the San Diego Integrated NAFLD Research Consortium (SINC).
Dr. Loomba and his collaborators lead research programs into applications of non-invasive biomarkers, especially imaging for assessment of fat, inflammation, cell injury, and fibrosis in patients with chronic liver diseases. The team conducts cutting edge clinical trials with novel therapies for treatment of NASH and liver fibrosis. This research incorporates genetics, epidemiology, and clinical trial design, imaging end-points, and integrated “OMICs” of the microbiome, metabolome and lipidome. After internal medicine training as Chief Resident at St. Luke’s Hospital in St. Louis, Dr. Loomba completed an advanced fellowship in hepatology at the NIH/NIDDK, and a Master of Health Science degree from the combined NIH-Duke University Program, followed by a fellowship in gastroenterology at UCSD. He is board-certified in Gastroenterology and is now the Director of Hepatology at UCSD. His research is funded by the NIH, the NSF, and the American Gastroenterology Association. He is Principal Investigator for the adult hepatology site for the NIDDK-sponsored NASH Clinical Research Network (2009-19) at UCSD.
Dr. Loomba is an elected board member of the American Liver Foundation and co-chairs its Research Award Panel. He is also a member of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) and was elected Vice-Chair of the NAFLD Special Interest Group. Dr. Loomba serves as a Deputy editor of Hepatology, the premier journal in the field.
About NASH
NASH occurs as a consequence of fat accumulation in liver. So-called “fatty liver” affects up to 30% of the worldwide population. In many patients, the excess fat has no adverse consequences; however, in about 20% of patients, an inflammatory process is triggered which can progress into NASH. Over time, NASH itself can lead to fibrosis and cirrhosis, which can require liver transplantation. Multiple studies show that uric acid markedly increases fat uptake into liver cells and may act as a trigger for inflammation. Approximately 50% of NASH patients have elevated uric acid, which is the target of Relburn’s novel patented drugs. Uric acid may be a causative factor in this subgroup and has been proposed as a treatment target. No drugs have yet been approved for treatment of NASH.
About Relburn-Metabolomics
Relburn is an emerging life-science company focused on improving health for patients with inflammatory diseases. NASH and gout are diseases that afflict 16 million patients each in the US/EU, and both are equally epidemic in Asia. Targeting enzymes that regulate both production and excretion of uric acid, Relburn compounds are markedly more potent than standard monofunctional drugs and have demonstrated exceptional clinical activity. In NASH, effective treatment can relieve both morbidity and mortality from this progressive disease. Further information can be accessed at: www.relburn.com.
Relburn company information: info@relburn.com
Contact:
Joshua E. Drumm, Ph.D.
Tiberend Strategic Advisors, Inc.
212-375-2664 office
jdrumm@tiberend.com
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SOURCE Relburn-Metabolomics, Inc.
