ATLANTA and BOSTON, March 05, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Inhibikase Therapeutics, Inc., a pharmaceutical company developing protein kinase inhibitors for the treatment of neurological infections and neurodegenerative diseases, today announced the appointment of three leading scientists in clinical development and the treatment of Parkinson’s Disease to its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). The SAB will complement the expertise of Inhibikase’s management team and support the company in advancing IkT-148009 for the treatment of Parkinson’s Disease and related disorders.
The members of Inhibikase Therapeutics’ SAB include:
- C. Warren Olanow, M.D., FRCPC, FRCP (HON), Professor Emeritus, Department of Neuroscience and Department of Neurology at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Chief Executive Officer of CLINTREX
- Karl D. Kieburtz, M.D., M.P.H., Professor, Department of Neurology at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, President of CLINTREX
- Robert A. Hauser, M.D., M.B.A., Professor, Department of Neurology, Department of Molecular Pharmacology, and Director of the Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Center at the University of South Florida
“We are pleased to welcome Dr. Olanow, Dr. Kieburtz and Dr. Hauser to our Scientific Advisory Board. As Inhibikase continues to learn as a company, we believe their clinical development, treatment expertise and successful track record will be a critical asset as we continue to explore our approach to potentially both halt and reverse Parkinson’s Disease,” said Milton Werner, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Inhibikase Therapeutics. “We look forward to working closely together to expand our understanding of Parkinson’s Disease.”
“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to join Inhibikase Therapeutics at such a pivotal time. IkT-148009 is an exciting new compound with the potential to prevent the formation and spread of toxic forms of alpha-synuclein, and to thereby slow the rate of progression of Parkinson’s Disease,” said Dr. Olanow. “I look forward to collaborating with the team to help advance these programs through clinical development and make a significant impact for patients.”
C. Warren Olanow, M.D., FRCPC, FRCP (HON)
Dr. Olanow is the former Henry P. and Georgette Goldschmidt Professor and Chairman of the Department of Neurology, at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, and currently serves as Professor Emeritus in the Department of Neurology and in the Department of Neuroscience at this institution. He also serves as Chief Executive Officer of CLINTREX, a pharmaceutical advisory firm that has designed numerous clinical trials in neurodegenerative disease for the pharmaceutical industry. Previously, he was President of the Movement Disorder Society, President of the International Society of Motor Disturbances, Treasurer of the American Neurological Association, and Editor-in-Chief of the journal Movement Disorders. Dr. Olanow has led multiple pivotal clinical trials including the Pergolide study, ADAGIO study, STRIDE-PD, DBS for tremor, DBS for PD, fetal nigral transplantation, gene delivery of neurturin, the approved trial of levodopa/carbidopa intestinal gel (Duopa®) treatment and the pivotal study testing the apomorphine sublingual strip. He has served on dozens of Scientific Advisory Committees for pharmaceutical and biotech companies, including The Michael J. Fox Foundation and the National Space Biomedical Research Institute. He is an honorary professor at University College London (Royal Free Hospital), an honorary member of the French Neurological Society and an honorary fellow of the Royal College of Physicians in the United Kingdom (FRCP). He is the recipient of the 2013 Movement Disorders Research Award from the American Academy of Neurology and the lifetime achievement award from the International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society. Dr. Olanow received his medical degree from the University of Toronto and performed his neurology training at the New York Neurological Institute at Columbia University.
Karl Kieburtz, M.D., M.P.H.
Dr. Kieburtz was the initial Robert J Joynt Professor in the Department of Neurology and is currently Professor of Neurology at the University of Rochester. He also serves as President of CLINTREX, a pharmaceutical advisory firm. He was the Founding Director of the Center of Human Experimental Therapeutics (CHET), and served as the Director of the Clinical and Translational Science Institute and Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Research at the University of Rochester. Dr. Kieburtz is Director of the clinical coordinating center for the PPMI program sponsored by The Michael J. Fox Foundation. He served as the Chair of the FDA Peripheral and Central Nervous System Advisory Committee, Chair of the Parkinson Study Group Executive Committee and is a former member of the Huntington Study Group Executive Committee. Previously, Dr. Kieburtz was Vice President of the American Neurological Association, a member of the International Executive Committee of the Movement Disorder Society and an associate editor of the journals Neurology and Movement Disorders. He has been principal investigator for more than 50 multi-center clinical trials including the large NIH-sponsored multi-center NET-PD study. Dr. Kieburtz attended medical school and performed a Neurology Residency at the University of Rochester and obtained an M.P.H. from the same institution.
Robert A. Hauser, M.D., M.B.A.
Dr. Hauser is Professor of Neurology and Molecular Pharmacology at the University of South Florida (USF) College of Medicine and Director of the USF Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders Center, a Parkinson Foundation Center of Excellence. He has authored and co-authored more than 300 publications and is one of the world’s most cited Parkinson’s Disease investigators. Previously, Dr. Hauser was Chairman of the Interventional Neurology Section of the American Academy of Neurology, served on the executive committee of the Parkinson Study Group and is a member of the steering committee for the NIH Exploratory Trials in Parkinson's Disease program (NET-PD). His research focus is the development of new treatments for Parkinson’s Disease and other movement disorders. His areas of expertise include clinical trials design and execution, and evaluation of emerging medical and surgical therapies for Parkinson’s Disease. Dr. Hauser obtained his medical degree from Temple University School of Medicine and performed his neurology training at the Eastern Virginia Graduate School of Medicine. He then completed a fellowship in Movement Disorders at the University of South Florida.
About Parkinson’s Disease
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder, affecting approximately 1,000,000 persons in the United States, with 60,000 new cases and 38,000 deaths annually. PD is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that initiates with dysfunction of a small protein known as alpha-synuclein, inside and outside of the brain. The common features of PD include tremors at a resting state, slowing or lack of control of movement and postural instability. These features of the disease arise from degeneration of neurons that secrete dopamine to transmit neurological signals. The degeneration of these dopaminergic (DA) neurons in nigrostriatal area of the brain near the brainstem, coupled with the accumulation of alpha-synuclein protein aggregates in cell bodies and terminals known as Lewy bodies (LBs), have long been thought to be the cause of the disease. Less well known are the features of this disease can affect serotonin levels, cholinergic, and norepinephrine neurons and nerve cells in the olfactory system, cerebral hemisphere, brain stem, spinal cord, and peripheral autonomic nervous system such as in the GI tract. Currently, these non-dopaminergic features are not properly controlled with dopamine-replacement or levodopa therapy.
About Inhibikase Therapeutics
Inhibikase Therapeutics, Inc. is a pharmaceutical company focused on the development of protein kinase inhibitors for treatment of neurological infections and neurodegenerative diseases. The Company’s pipeline includes multiple product developed from its proprietary RAMP drug innovation and prodrug technology engines, using the same clinically validated kinase target. The Company is headquartered in Atlanta with additional offices in Boston, Massachusetts.
Inhibikase Investor Contact
Carl Mauch
Stern Investor Relations
212-362-1200
carl.mauch@sternir.com