Neuroaxonal Dystrophies

SAN FRANCISCO and BERLIN, Jan. 18, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reservoir Neuroscience announced today the completion of a $4M financing round to support the development of new therapies for age-related neurodegeneration. Reservoir will use the funds to develop its novel class of drug compounds designed to restore health to the brain’s blood vessels to rejuvenate the aging brain. The round was led by Kizoo Technology Capital, a leading rejuvenation biotech investor focused on startups reversing age-related damage at the cellular and molecular level, with additional participation from previous investors R42 Fund and Healthspan Ventures. Reservoir’s unique approach to neurodegeneration was developed by co-founders Aaron Friedman and Vlad Senatorov, PhD neuroscientists from UC Berkeley who focus on understanding how aging blood vessels effect brain health. The company aims to develop the first drug that specifically targets vascular disease as a new way to restore brain health during natural aging and in age-related diseases. Emerging research has shown that a majority of the aging population develops vascular decline as early as middle age, making vascular pathology one of the first and most prevalent signs of brain disease. Using an innovative organ-on-chip technology to grow human blood vessels and study vascular aging, Reservoir discovered and developed a first-in-kind compound that reverses disease in blood vessels and repairs the damaged blood-brain barrier. Reservoir's therapeutic strategy seeks to restore health to blood vessels to reverse degenerative damage that spreads from the blood vessels to the brain. “By treating the underlying vascular problems that most patients inevitably develop through aging, we are addressing the single greatest risk factor for developing neurodegenerative disease. We believe this approach to rejuvenating the aging brain will be effective not only as a single therapy, but also has broader potential for brain health and systemic benefits in a wide variety of age-related diseases,” says Dr. Friedman, CEO of Reservoir Neuroscience. “We believe that Reservoir's novel approach to restoring the health of the brain's blood vessels, while also repairing the blood-brain barrier, has the potential to address the root causes of several neurological pathologies,” says Patrick Burgermeister, Partner of Kizoo Technology Capital and new board member of Reservoir Neuroscience. About Reservoir Neuroscience Reservoir Neuroscience is an early-stage, San Fransisco Bay Area venture-backed biotech advancing a novel therapy to reverse brain vascular pathology in aging and neurodegenerative diseases. In these critically unmet diseases, the brain's blood vessels become damaged and dysfunctional; causing inflammation that drives disease outcomes. This vascular pathology is the earliest biomarker of neurodegeneration and defines the largest patient segment yet has never been treated. Reservoir Neuroscience is led by co-founders Aaron Friedman and Vlad Senatorov, PhD neuroscientists from UC Berkeley who pioneered new research uncovering how blood vessel aging causes brain disease. Reservoir Neuroscience developed a proprietary human organ chip platform to discover novel, class-leading compounds that restore brain vascular health, offering a first-in-kind approach to reverse vascular pathology and neuroinflammation. For more information, please visit: www.reservoirneuro.com About Kizoo Kizoo provides seed and follow-on financing with a focus on rejuvenation biotech. Having been entrepreneurs, VCs, and mentors in both high-growth tech and biotech companies ourselves for many years with multiple exits and massive value created for the founders, Kizoo now brings this experience to the emerging field of rejuvenation biotech. We see this as a young industry that will eventually outgrow today's largest technology markets. As part of Michael Greve's Forever Healthy Group, Kizoo directly supports the creation of startups turning research on the root causes of aging into therapies and services for human application. Investments include Cellvie, Cyclarity, Revel Pharmaceuticals, Elastrin Therapeutics, MoglingBio, and others. For more information, please visit: www.kizoo.com Media Contact for Kizoo Frank SchuelerManaging DirectorKizoo Technology Capitalfs@kizoo.com Media Contact for Reservoir Neuroscience Aaron FriedmanCEO Reservoir Neuroscienceaaron@reservoirneuro.com

Investment supports study evaluating three novel, non-invasive neuroimaging biomarkers of Alzheimer's disease and dementia SHERBROOKE, QC, Oct. 24, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Imeka, the leading neuroimaging company combining diffusion imaging and AI to map white matter microstructure, today announced an investment from the Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF) to accelerate the development of novel biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. The investment will support use of Imeka neuroimaging biomarkers in a large-scale, longitudinal study of dementia markers and their progression from pre-symptomatic stages to the onset of Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia. "Neuroinflammation has long been an area of interest in Alzheimer's drug development, but without the proper biomarkers to monitor inflammation levels in the brain, researchers will struggle to validate their findings and showcase the efficacy of their drugs," says Howard Fillit, MD, Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer at the ADDF. "The development of a novel neuroimaging tool, like Imeka's, will not only prove vital for bringing neuroinflammatory therapeutics to market, but will also expand the biomarker pipeline to include multiple biomarkers exploring various pathways, all of which support the biology of aging approach—the idea that many underlying pathologies lead to the onset of the disease." Imeka's proprietary neuroimaging technology helps pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies identify biomarkers associated with neurological conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, MS, and Traumatic Brain Injury. Combining AI and neuroimaging, Imeka's technology provides highly localized views of the effects of both disease and investigational treatments on white matter, equipping physicians with more detailed information on the brain to support patient assessments. As part of this new project, Imeka will evaluate three novel, non-invasive diffusion MRI biomarkers of neuroinflammation, demyelination, and axonal disruption in high-quality Alzheimer's disease data sets as potential non-invasive and less costly alternatives to PET scans. The study objectives include: Evaluating Imeka's novel, non-invasive diffusion MRI biomarkers of neuroinflammation, demyelination, and axonal disruption with other imaging and fluid-based biomarkers Confirming the potential of these three measures as monitoring biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease Comparing Imeka's biomarkers to a post-mortem Alzheimer's disease brain bank The knowledge gained from this project will be brought into Imeka's Advanced Neuro Diagnostic Imaging (ANDI) quantitative imaging software – which recently received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration – helping radiologists, neurologists, and other medical professionals quickly translate these valuable insights into clinical practice. "We are extremely grateful to collaborate with the ADDF on this breakthrough project," said Jean-René Bélanger, Chief Executive Officer at Imeka. "Alzheimer's is a devastating disease that impacts the everyday lives of millions of people and their families. We founded Imeka to develop novel, non-invasive neuroimaging technologies that can help search for and develop cures for Alzheimer's and other brain diseases and, ultimately, to provide clinical tools that will help diagnose and monitor neurological diseases and conditions as well as orient treatments and evaluate their efficacy. The investment from the ADDF will fuel research that significantly advances our understanding of Alzheimer's disease. Together, we can help improve the monitoring of existing treatments for Alzheimer's, accelerate the discovery of new therapeutics to prevent and treat the disease, and improve the overall standard of care for both the diagnosis and treatment of patients." "Brain imaging is important for detecting and monitoring Alzheimer's disease, but traditional imaging tools have mostly overlooked the role of white matter and the use of MRI as a sensitive and specific tool to assess neuroinflammation and the integrity of axons and myelin. We are excited to collaborate with the ADDF on this project. The post-mortem brain bank data and the in-vivo human patient data used for the validation part of the project are of unprecedented value and quality," said Maxime Descoteaux, Co-Founder and Scientific Advisor at Imeka. "By combining data from this new project with Imeka's ANDI quantitative imaging software, we can equip healthcare practitioners with greater detail about white matter through non-invasive, more-reliable imaging. We believe this critical information can enhance monitoring in Alzheimer's disease clinical trials and help improve patient outcomes." To learn more, please visit . About Imeka Imeka is the global leader in white matter microstructure imaging, combining advanced MRI processing capabilities and artificial intelligence to bring novel insights to the research and clinical communities. The company has been working with all major pharmaceutical companies developing treatments for neurodegenerative diseases and is now offering its state-of-the-art technology to physicians to directly impact patients. Based in Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada, the company also has an office in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Learn more at . About The Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF) Founded in 1998 by Leonard A. and Ronald S. Lauder, the Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation is dedicated to rapidly accelerating the discovery of drugs to prevent, treat and cure Alzheimer's disease. The ADDF is the only public charity solely focused on funding the development of drugs for Alzheimer's, employing a venture philanthropy model to support research in academia and the biotech industry. The ADDF's leadership and contributions to the field have played a pivotal role in bringing the first Alzheimer's PET scan (Amyvid®) and blood test (PrecivityAD®) to market, as well as fueling the current robust and diverse drug pipeline. Through the generosity of its donors, the ADDF has awarded more than $250 million to fund over 720 Alzheimer's drug discovery programs, biomarker programs and clinical trials in 19 countries. To learn more, please visit: . SOURCE Imeka

– Project ‘NADER’ is intended to span multiple phases, starting from mapping rare diseases in the UAE and wider region through innovative risk assessment algorithms, and moving towards clinical trials with transformative medicines Burjeel Holdings, one of the largest healthcare providers in the MENA region, and BridgeBio Pharma, Inc., a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on genetic diseases and cancers, have announced a new project to revolutionize the field of early diagnosis and treatment of rare diseases or disorders in the UAE and the region. The two entities signed a preliminary, non-binding Collaboration Agreement establishing a mutual intention to work together on project ‘NADER’ (Needs Assessment and Therapeutics Development for Rare Diseases – ‘nader’ meaning ‘rare’ in Arabic). Genetic in origin, these often life-threatening or chronically debilitating diseases affect a small percentage of the population and are present throughout the person's entire life, even if symptoms do not immediately appear. The partnership will launch operations in Abu Dhabi to conduct clinical trials and research, leveraging the Emirate’s advanced infrastructure for innovation and life science. Project ‘NADER’ aims to revolutionize the field of early diagnosis and treatment in order to potentially improve patient outcomes. The entities intend to collaborate on identifying patients with several rare diseases, including achondroplasia, hypochondroplasia, FGFR-driven craniosynostoses, autosomal dominant hypocalcemia type 1, limb girdle muscular dystrophy type 2i, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, Canavan disease, propionic acidemia, methylmalonic acidemia, pantothenate kinase-associated neurodegeneration, and others as mutually agreed. Even though these rare diseases affect a small percentage of the population and can present with nonspecific signs and symptoms, they are often misdiagnosed or only diagnosed later in the disease course after severe complications manifest. Accurate and early diagnosis are crucial to starting intervention promptly and avoiding disease progression. The project will also allow identification of patients who have already been diagnosed but do not currently have access to cutting edge therapies or clinical trial options. In the first phase of project ‘NADER’, the two entities intend to utilize innovative risk assessment algorithms that will be deployed through the healthcare provider’s secure internal data to identify patients at risk for specific rare diseases. Expectations for future phases of the project include analyses of vast amounts of data to identify patterns and markers associated with the diseases and generate personalized risk scores for patients, followed by genetic testing to confirm the diagnosis of identified potential patients. The project also aims to run awareness campaigns and education activities about such rare diseases, to further support the mapping activity and encourage local collaborations from other healthcare providers. Burjeel Holdings will deploy the project across its widespread hospitals and medical centers across the UAE as part of routine diagnostic care, with plans to expand the project through its growing healthcare infrastructure in the region. Local partnerships will also be sought to facilitate wider implementation. Speaking on the partnership’s potential to transform the way rare diseases are identified, Mr. John Sunil, CEO of Burjeel Holdings, said, “Project ‘NADER’ marks a significant milestone in our commitment to delivering the best possible care to our patients. It brings together Burjeel’s expertise in healthcare delivery and outreach and BridgeBio’s vast expertise in delivering breakthrough therapies for rare diseases. By combining our strengths, we seek to address the challenges faced in identification of rare diseases, which often go undiagnosed until symptoms become severe. The project will enable early interventions whether in the form of established treatments or novel therapies.” Commenting on the project launch, Dr. Asma Ibrahim Al Mannaei, Executive Director of the Research, and Innovation Center at the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi (DoH), said: “As part of our ongoing efforts to advance early diagnosis and treatment, the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi is proud to witness yet another leading partnership aimed at propelling transformative medicine to safeguard the health and well-being of community members. Reinforcing Abu Dhabi’s position as a leading destination for life science and innovation, we remain committed to empowering healthcare providers in the Emirate with the means to lead research studies and conduct clinical trials to map out a path towards discovery and breakthrough healthcare in the Emirate and beyond. Similar initiatives translate the Department’s vision in securing health for all while accelerating healthcare outcomes for the benefit of the global community.” The first phase will aim to set the roadmap to providing novel treatment options for identified patients through clinical trials. Dr. Khaled Musallam, Group Chief Research Officer of Burjeel Holdings and project lead said, “Many rare diseases are highly clustered in our region due to our unique genetic pool. These diseases are often ‘lost in the system’ or have very limited treatment options. Our ultimate goal from project ‘NADER’ is to link patients to evolving treatment options through clinical trials of small molecules and gene therapies. The first step to bringing such innovative solutions to our region is to identify disease burden and patients’ unmet needs.” “Building on our already established foundation of genetic disease patient care, we hope that BridgeBio can help bring more patients access to novel treatments, clinical trials, and capabilities alongside a strong partner like Burjeel, and so we are grateful to be working with them to expand our efforts in the MENA region. The BridgeBio vision is to serve patients around the world, and this is an important step in that direction,” said Neil Kumar, Ph.D., BridgeBio founder and CEO. As the collaboration unfolds, both Burjeel Holdings and BridgeBio anticipate significant progress in the field of rare diseases in the region. The project could also provide patients in the region with increased access to BridgeBio’s state-of-the-art pharmacologic and gene therapies that are currently in development. About Burjeel Holdings Founded in 2007, Burjeel Holdings is one of the leading private healthcare services providers in the MENA region. With a network of 62 assets, including 16 hospitals and 24 medical centers, as well as pharmacies and other allied services, the group provides the highest standard of patient care in the region. Burjeel Medical City, the flagship facility of Burjeel Holdings, is a 400-bed multi-specialty hospital and quaternary care center located in Abu Dhabi, UAE. It offers high-quality specialized treatment and complex care in over 40 adult and pediatric specialties, aided by state-of-the-art medical technology and an international team of experts. Find more information at www.burjeelmedicalcity.com, www.burjeelholdings.com. About BridgeBio Pharma, Inc. BridgeBio Pharma Inc. (BridgeBio) is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company founded to discover, create, test, and deliver transformative medicines to treat patients who suffer from genetic diseases and cancers with clear genetic drivers. BridgeBio’s pipeline of development programs ranges from early science to advanced clinical trials. BridgeBio was founded in 2015 and its team of experienced drug discoverers, developers, and innovators are committed to applying advances in genetic medicine to help patients as quickly as possible. For more information visit bridgebio.com and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter. The content above comes from the network. if any infringement, please contact us to modify.