Effective earlier this month, Humonix Biosciences, Inc. has appointed founder Karen Torrejon, PhD, as CEO.
Let’s start with a refresh of this company.
Launched in 2014 (by Dr. Torrejon) and based in Albany, New York, Humonix is a specialty pharmaceutical research company that has developed human tissue engineering platform technology to:
- Reduce drug development costs
- Improve clinical trial success rates
- Mitigate investment risks
Go on …
The company’s operations also include collaborating with academic and industry partners to screen, identify, and validate a unique mechanism of action (MOA) for potentially effective drug candidates.
- Note: Previously known as Glauconix Biosciences, Inc., the company changed its name in July 2023 to reflect its expanded focus beyond glaucoma (more on that later).
Now to this new CEO … who is she replacing?
Dr. Torrejon is preceded by Kimberly Southern, who held the position since January 2020 (and served as chief operating officer prior to that).
Tell me more about Dr. Torrejon.
Dr. Torrejon previously served as Humonix’s chief scientific officer (CSO), where she managed and led the company’s development efforts.
Prior to that, after “working in drug discovery for 3 years,” she founded Humonix by inventing its proprietary platform technology.
Her goal with this technology: Fulfill an unmet need in drug discovery/development and seek a more effective therapy for patients.
Let’s circle back to this technology.
Humonix’s platform is based on a proprietary 3D human tissue-based system that has been scaled to study both vascular and fibrosis models (see above for those diseases).
Its purpose: Improve the drug development process by accelerating the preclinical research to human efficacy stages.
How: By using its “validated human tissue models” to predict potential future effects.
The (intended) result: Reduced cost and improved drug development program success.
- As a bonus: The company noted that its ex vivo system also reduces the need for animal testing, in accordance with the FDA's Modernization Act 2.0.
You’ve got to explain this act.
Signed into law in 2022, the FDA Modernization Act 2.0 invalidates the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetics Act of 1938, which required animal testing for every new drug development.
This new legislation allows for alternative forms of testing to animals, including cell-based assays and computer models.
Gotcha. And what diseases do these systems cover?
The company’s 3D cell culture systems include:
- Vascular models
- Retinal vascular dysfunction
- Pulmonary arterial hypertension
- Fibrotic models
- Glaucoma
- Pulmonary fibrosis
Dive more into the original glaucoma model.
As the company’s first tissue and physiologic testing platform, this technology is designed for early testing of drugs, biologics, polymers, gene- and ribonucleic acid (RNA)-based therapies, and implantable devices.
Its capabilities: Detecting induced changes in intraocular pressure (IOP) “at physiologically relevant levels with direct translatable, species, and clinically relevant results.”
So Humonix’s technology is unique in this regard?
Yes! As the company plans to expand its scientific platform systematically, Dr. Torrejon stated, “Our ability to test compounds in human tissues ex vivo sets us apart in enabling the early selection of ideal candidates for further development."