CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Sirtris Pharmaceuticals, the leading sirtuin therapeutics company, announced today that its science related to sirtuins was highlighted in the cover article of Scientific American entitled “Unlocking the Secrets of Longevity Genes.” Sirtuins are a recently discovered family of proteins that promote the body’s natural defense against disease, and new scientific evidence suggests that sirtuins protect against diseases of aging. Sirtris co-founder and Board of Director member, Professor David Sinclair, Ph.D., Director of the Paul F. Glenn Laboratories for the Biological Mechanisms of Aging at Harvard University, was the first author of the article which was published in the March 2006 issue of Scientific American.
“We are extremely pleased that Scientific American dedicated its cover article to the science of sirtuins and the important therapeutic potential of this new area of medical science,” stated Christoph Westphal, M.D., Ph.D., Sirtris’ Chief Executive Officer. “This article provides a comprehensive platform for understanding the breakthrough potential of this novel science to create first-in-class drugs to treat important diseases of aging.”
The article highlights recent scientific progress to elucidate the genes that control an organism’s ability to withstand adversity. These genes have been shown by Sinclair and others to enhance the organism’s ability to survive, prolonging life span and forestalling disease in a wide range of organisms. Research recently published in leading scientific journals indicates that sirtuins may play the leading role in regulating this survival mechanism. By harnessing the therapeutic and health-enhancing effects of sirtuins, researchers at Sirtris Pharmaceuticals are developing first-in-class sirtuin-modulating therapeutics for diseases of aging including metabolic and neurological diseases.
Online copies of the article can be obtained at http://www.sciamdigital.com/.
About Sirtris Pharmaceuticals
Sirtris Pharmaceuticals is a biopharmaceutical company developing and commercializing novel therapeutics that modulate sirtuins, a recently discovered family of enzymes that promotes the body’s natural defense against disease. Also known as class III histone deacetylases (HDACs), sirtuins are attractive drug targets for diseases of aging, including metabolic and neurological diseases. Sirtris has built the dominant sirtuin intellectual property estate and know-how, with a comprehensive suite of reagents, proprietary assays, transgenic animal models, and biomarkers.
Sirtris Pharmaceuticals was founded by Rich Aldrich, Richard Pops, Paul Schimmel, David Sinclair and Christoph Westphal, and has raised $45 million in private equity from leading venture capital firms including Polaris Venture Partners, Techno Venture Management, Cardinal Partners, Skyline Ventures, Three Arch Partners, The Wellcome Trust, Novartis Bioventures Fund, Cargill Ventures, Hunt Ventures, and Red Abbey. The company’s headquarters are in Cambridge, Massachusetts. For additional information, please visit http://www.sirtrispharma.com.
Media Contact: Kathryn Morris KMorris PR 845-635-9828
Sirtris Pharmaceuticals
CONTACT: Kathryn Morris of KMorris PR, +1-845-635-9828
Web site: http://www.sirtrispharma.com//
