World leading scientists join FORTUNIS CAPITALS INVESTEE, STEMPSON THERAPEUTICS
Fortunis Capital Investee Stemson Therapeutics announced today the addition of Kapil Bharti, Ph.D. and George Murphy, M.D. to its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). The addition of these distinguished leaders in the field significantly bolsters Stemson’s efforts to restore human hair growth with a novel cell regeneration technology using the patient’s own cells to generate new hair follicles.
Kapil Bharti, Ph.D. is a Senior Investigator at the National Eye Institute at the National Institutes of Health. He is a world renowned expert in regenerative medicine, stem cell biology, and developmental biology of the eye. Dr. Bharti is leading the first Phase I/IIa clinical trial in the US using autologous iPSC-derived cells to treat the retinal pigment epithelium in age-related macular degeneration (AMD). His pioneering work in combining iPSC-derived cells together with scaffolds and transferring those solutions into cutting edge, highly controlled and compliant manufacturing processes positions him to guide Stemson’s efforts in similar areas.
George Murphy, M.D. is Co-Director of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HSCI) Skin Program, Professor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School, and the Director of the Program in Dermatopathology at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He is a Harvard-trained skin pathologist with 40 years of experience as a physician-scientist focused on understanding the pathobiology of human and murine skin. He has authored over 300 peer-reviewed publications and numerous textbooks in the field of skin pathology and has maintained a continuously NIH-funded research lab for over 35 years. Through this Harvard-based research and his role at the HSCI, Dr. Murphy has a major interest in how the genetic and epigenetic factors and related microenvironmental niches participate in complex regenerative phenomena such as scarless wound healing and hair follicle cycling and neogenesis.
“We are delighted and honored to welcome Dr. Bharti and Dr. Murphy to our SAB to enhance our world-class group of scientific advisors supporting the company,” said Stemson Therapeutics cofounder and Chief Executive Officer, Geoff Hamilton. “Dr. Bharti’s expertise in iPSC-derived therapeutics development, and Dr. Murphy’s expertise in skin, stem cells and hair follicle biology will accelerate our development of a breakthrough solution to regenerate hair follicles.”