The longevity company develops gene therapies aimed at rejuvenation via partial reprogramming by Yamanaka factors
SEATTLE, April 14, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- YouthBio Therapeutics, a longevity biotechnology company, has announced today its emergence out of stealth mode. YouthBio focuses on developing gene therapies aimed at epigenetic rejuvenation, particularly with the help of partial reprogramming by Yamanaka factors. The company was founded in early 2021 by Yuri Deigin and Viet Ly who will serve as its CEO and CFO, respectively. Dr. João Pedro de Magalhães will serve as the company's CSO and Dr. Alejandro Ocampo will serve as lead research collaborator.
Yuri Deigin is a biotech entrepreneur with a focus on early-stage translation. Previously, Mr. Deigin has led several early-stage pharmaceutical startups, including one developing an Alzheimer's Disease therapeutic, and another startup developing small-molecule neuroprotectors for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and a rare pediatric disease. Mr. Deigin has been a vocal proponent of epigenetic rejuvenation by partial reprogramming since 2017.
"I am very optimistic that in the next 10 years science will provide humanity with major breakthroughs that will enable us to add decades of healthy life to people. Partial reprogramming is something I was always excited about as having the potential to be one such therapy," said Yuri Deigin. "I am thrilled to take its research and development to the next level with the help of amazing colleagues."
Viet Ly is an angel investor and entrepreneur with over twenty years of fund management, trading, equities analysis, market forecasting, and business development experience. He is a recipient of the 2016 Wealth & Finance International U.S. Venture Capital Fund Manager of the Year Award. Mr. Ly has researched and invested in biotech companies since 2004 and helped build and presently serves as a strategic advisor to Genprex, a gene therapy biotech company. He has also been an early investor in Airbnb, SpaceX, and Virgin Hyperloop.
"I have been an early investor in multiple industries for almost two decades, and I don't think I have seen a sector with as much potential as longevity biotech is showing right now. I am thoroughly excited about the prospects of YouthBio and the future of epigenetic gene therapies generally," said Viet Ly. "We have a great team and true pioneers of the field as collaborators, so I am confident in our bid to become a top longevity biotech company in the next decade, and help make a difference for millions of patients suffering from the diseases of aging."
Dr. de Magalhães is a leading aging researcher. Following a postdoc with genomics pioneer Prof George Church at Harvard Medical School, in 2008 he was recruited to the University of Liverpool where he leads the Integrative Genomics of Ageing Group. His lab studies the ageing process and how we can manipulate it to fend off age-related diseases and improve human health. Dr. de Magalhães has authored over 100 publications and given over 100 invited talks, including three TEDx talks. In addition, he has a long-term interest in technological trends and their future impact on society.
"Cellular reprogramming allows us to rejuvenate cells and reset their biological clocks. It is the most important technology available today for developing rejuvenation therapies, although it still needs to be fine-tuned for effective and safe applications," said Dr. de Magalhães. "As such, I am delighted to be working with YouthBio in this endeavor. Exploiting cellular reprogramming to develop therapies for age-related diseases is extremely exciting and, if successful, may result in a paradigm shift in medicine."
Dr. Ocampo is a pioneer of the field of partial reprogramming. Between 2013 and 2017, he performed a post-doctoral training with Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, California. During his postdoctoral training at the Salk, Dr. Ocampo has developed a novel technology to prevent the transmission of mitochondrial diseases and demonstrated the amelioration of age-associated hallmarks by partial cellular reprogramming. In 2018, he joined University of Lausanne to continue his work on aging, cellular reprogramming and mitochondrial diseases.
"I am delighted to collaborate with YouthBio in order to accelerate the clinical translation of cellular reprogramming for the treatment of age-associated diseases," said Dr. Ocampo. "It is very exciting to see how fast this technology is advancing since our initial observations regarding its capacity to reverse aging only five years ago."
About partial reprogramming:
Cellular reprogramming is the process by which terminally differentiated cells can be returned back to a pluripotent (embryonic-like) state via Yamanaka factors or their analogs. This process also ameliorates the cells' aging hallmarks. Partial reprogramming is the method whereby Yamanaka factors are induced only for short periods, which is not enough to fully dedifferentiate cells beyond a point of no return but is enough to induce rejuvenation of said cells.
About YouthBio Therapeutics Inc.:
YouthBio Therapeutics is a longevity company presently developing gene therapies aimed at restoring more youthful epigenetic profiles with the help of partial reprogramming. It is presently running animal studies aimed at several therapeutic areas, and is also engaged in fundamental discovery research aimed at finding better reprogramming factors.
For more information please visit https://youthbiotx.com
Contact:
Yuri Deigin
[email protected]
Photo(s):
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Press release distributed by PRLog
SOURCE YouthBio Therapeutics Inc.
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