FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 15, 2009
Salient Pharmaceuticals Expands Scientific Advisory Board
HOUSTON, Texas — Salient Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, announced today that the Company has added three internationally recognized experts to its Scientific Advisory Board, to advise on the development of its new product for severe diarrhea. Richard Scruggs, President and CEO of Salient Pharmaceuticals stated “These three men join our established board to give us a wealth of practical insight and open doors for continued research and growth.”
Dr. William J. Sandborn MD completed medical school and an internal medicine residency at Loma Linda University in Loma Linda California. He completed a gastroenterology fellowship at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota in 1993. He is Professor of Medicine and the Dorothy A. Adair Professor of Gastrointestinal Research at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, as well as the Vice Chairman of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Division at Mayo Clinic, and the Associate Director of Research at Mayo Clinic responsible for collaboration with the Office of Intellectual Property. He is chairman of the International Organization of Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Dr. Sandborn has published more than 300 peer-reviewed articles, including articles in the New England Journal of Medicine, The Lancet, Journal of the American Medical Association, the Annals of Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology. His research interests are clinical trials and clinical pharmacology related to inflammatory bowel disease.
“Inflammatory bowel disease affects millions of people around the world,” Scruggs said. “I believe Dr. Sandborn’s deep understanding of these diseases, the current standard of care and the pending developments positions him very well to contribute to this aspect of our development”.
Dr. Al B. Benson III MD is a Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology/Oncology at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, Illinois. He is also the Associate Director for Clinical Investigations and Chair of the Clinical Protocol Scientific Review and Monitoring System for the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, a National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, at Northwestern University. In addition, he is an Attending Physician at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, a Staff Physician at VA Chicago Health Care System and a Consultant to the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.
Dr. Benson earned his medical degree at the State University of New York at Buffalo, following which he completed an Internal Medicine Residency at the University of Wisconsin Hospitals in Madison, Wisconsin. He was an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Illinois and Co-Medical Director for the National Public Health Service in Champaign, Illinois. He then served as a Clinical Oncology Fellow at the University of Wisconsin Clinical Cancer Center, where he received an American Cancer Society Fellowship Award.
Dr. Benson is active on numerous professional committees, often serving as an officer. He has served on a number of committees for the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and is currently a member of the Task Force on Quality of Cancer Care, the Co-Chair of ASCO’s Colorectal Cancer Guidelines Subcommittee, the Stage II Colon Cancer Guidelines Panel and the Guidelines Panel for use of Radiofrequency Ablation for Colorectal Cancer Hepatic Metastases. He is also the Chair of the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Gastrointestinal and Data Monitoring Committees. In addition, he is a member of several medical societies, and is a past President of the Illinois Medical Oncology Society, a Trustee and President-Elect for the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC), and a member of the Board of Directors of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), now serving as chair. He is the past President of the International Society of GI Oncology (ISGIO).
“Dr. Al B. Benson III is one of the most prolific authors on the topic of cancer therapy-induced diarrhea,” Scruggs says. “Given that this important medical problem is the subject of our first clinical trials, we believe Dr. Benson will have a direct impact on our plans for studies and product development”.
John G. Bartlett MD is a professor of medicine in the Infectious Disease Division of The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He served as Chief of the Infectious Disease Division at the school for 26 years, stepping down in July of 2006. He has worked in several areas of research, all related to his specialty in infectious diseases. His major research interests have included anaerobic infections, pathogenic mechanisms of Bacteroides fragilis, anaerobic pulmonary infections, and Clostridium difficile-associated colitis. Since moving to Johns Hopkins, his major interests have been HIV/AIDS, managed care of patients with HIV infection and bioterrorism.
Dr. Bartlett is a member of the Institute of Medicine, a master of the American College of Physicians, past president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), and a recipient of the Kass Award from the IDSA. In 2005, Dr. Bartlett was awarded the Alexander Fleming Award by the IDSA and the Finland Award from the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID).
Dr. Bartlett has authored over 500 articles and reviews, more than 280 book chapters, and over 60 editions of 18 books. He participates as an editorial board member for numerous journals, including Anaerobe and Biosecurity and Bioterrorism.
“Bartlett is an internationally recognized infectious disease expert with a particular interest in Clostridium difficile,” Scruggs says. “We could not be more pleased to have someone of his stature join the Scientific Advisory Board. In addition to his wide range of experiences, his personal professional interest in Clostridium difficile aligns with the Company’s near-term plans. We expect him to play an integral role in our planning for clinical studies related to Clostridium difficile, a world-wide problem”.
Initial members of the Scientific Advisory Board, announced earlier this year, include chairman Robert A. Newman, PhD, professor emeritus from the University of Texas’ MD Anderson Cancer Center and Chief Science Officer of New Chapter, Inc.; Robert H. Carpenter, DVM – the Company’s Chief Science Officer and adjunct professor at Texas A&M University; H. Andrew Hansen II, MD of Central Texas Cardiovascular Surgery and the Company’s Medical Director; and Chen Adam Zong, PhD, an experienced pharmaceutical industry executive.
The Scientific Advisory Board’s primary charter is to provide advice and counsel as to the soundness of the Company's science position as well as provide insight into market needs and potential applications of the technology. The board will also contribute to Salient’s research focus and goals, the soundness of clinical trial strategies and tactics and ongoing insight as to advances in medicine .
Now the subject of multiple pre-clinical and clinical studies, Salient’s proprietary lead compound is intended for use in treating severe diarrhea associated with chemotherapy, chronic conditions, infectious diseases and other drug therapies.
Formed in 2007, Salient Pharmaceuticals is a Houston, Texas-based life sciences company whose mission is to improve health and quality of life while strengthening the odds of therapy success for patients who suffer from the debilitating effects of chronic and/or acute diarrhea.
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