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NewsProteostasis Therapeutics Exclusively Licenses Discoveries Related to Unfolded Protein Response from Ron Laboratory at New York University January 7, 2010, Cambridge, Mass. - Proteostasis Therapeutics announced today that it has entered into an exclusive license agreement with New York University for intellectual property related to discoveries from the laboratory of David Ron, M.D., Professor of Medicine and Julius Raynes Professor of Cell Biology at NYU Langone Medical Center's Skirball Institute of Biomolecular Medicine. Dr. Ron’s research focuses on the Unfolded Protein Response (UPR) and his laboratory identifies new components of the cellular response to stress, which is the mechanism behind many common diseases of aging. The UPR is an important part of the Proteostasis Network (PN), the cellular machinery that maintains protein health. The exclusive license accelerates the Company's drug discovery efforts to identify Proteostasis Regulators (PRs), small molecule drugs designed to restore protein balance. In addition, Dr. Ron has joined the Company’s Scientific Advisory Board. Christopher Mirabelli, Ph.D., Chairman of the Board of Proteostasis, said, "This new relationship is an example of how Proteostasis is building its intellectual assets by identifying and connecting with leading academic scientists who are elucidating PN pathways. We selectively enter into licenses in which existing intellectual property enables us to accelerate our internal efforts to identify Proteostasis Regulators in diseases of aging and therapeutic areas of high unmet medical need. We also welcome Dr. Ron, a leading UPR researcher, to our Scientific Advisory Board and believe his expertise will be valuable as we continue to build our proprietary technology platform." "Our lab is focused on uncovering new components of the cellular stress response and understanding their role in the pathology of human diseases," said Dr. Ron. "The UPR pathway is implicated in a broad range of diseases, including diabetes, Parkinson's disease, inflammatory bowel disease, and retinal degeneration. Proteostasis Therapeutics’ novel drug discovery platform, which integrates multiple PN pathways, provides an advantage in rapidly developing UPR modulators identified by our lab into potential therapeutics for these diseases." Dr. Ron is one of the leading researchers in understanding the Unfolded Protein Response and its role in disease. He received his medical degree from the Technion in Haifa, Israel. After completing clinical training in Internal Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital and in Endocrinology and Metabolism at the Massachusetts General Hospital, he conducted research on gene expression in adipose tissue. In 1992, he established a research laboratory at New York University School of Medicine. About Proteostasis Therapeutics, Inc. Proteostasis Therapeutics is discovering "Proteostasis Regulators" (PRs), small molecule drugs that restore proper protein function to treat neurodegenerative, metabolic, genetic and inflammatory disorders. The Proteostasis Network is the cellular machinery responsible for protein folding, trafficking and clearance, and it can become imbalanced by the cumulative effects of aging, disease and genetics. PTI was founded by leading scientists who discovered a pioneering approach for treating disease by restoring protein network homeostasis. www.proteostasis.com Contacts: Media: |
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