ROCHESTER, N.Y. and
LONDON, July 14, 2014 /PRNewswire/
-- VirtualScopics, Inc. (NASDAQ: VSCP) and IXICO plc (AIM:
IXI) jointly announced today the formation of a Scientific Advisory
Board that will benefit both companies. Dr. Edward Ashton, Ph.D., chief scientific officer,
VirtualScopics, will chair the Board which initially will have
seven members.
"The formation of this joint Scientific Advisory Board is an
important initiative of the international commercial and
operational alliance we signed with IXICO plc on June 27, 2014," said Eric
Converse, interim president and chief executive officer of
VirtualScopics. "We are very honored and pleased that our initial
members have agreed to pioneer this very strategic effort on both
companies' parts."
The founding members of the Scientific Advisory Board are:
- Dr. Edward Ashton, Ph.D., Chief
Scientific Officer, VirtualScopics, Inc. (Chair)
- Dr. Derek Hill, Ph.D., Chief
Executive Officer, IXICO plc
- Dr. Jonathan Riek, Ph.D., Chief
Technical Officer, VirtualScopics, Inc.
- Dr. Jeffrey Evelhoch, Ph.D.,
Vice President & Global Head of Imaging in Early Stage
Development, Merck Research Laboratories
- Dr. Dirk Reitsma, M.D., Vice
President of Global Product Development and Therapeutic Area Head
of Oncology, PPD
- Dr. Claude Sirlin, M.D.,
Professor of Radiology & Chief of Body Imaging, Department of
Radiology, University of California, San
Diego
- Dr. Karl Schwarz, M.D.,
University of Rochester
"A benefit of the alliance between IXICO and VirtualScopics is
the ability and opportunity for us to think more strategically
about the evolving needs of our customers in the pharmaceutical
industry and the ways they can best use imaging in their clinical
studies," said Dr. Derek Hill,
Ph.D., chief executive officer of IXICO. "This includes selecting
subjects for trials as well as assessing the efficacy and safety of
experimental treatments. The Scientific Advisory Board provides a
forum for key alliance scientists to work with external experts to
map current and future roles for imaging in a number of disease
categories."
"I am very pleased to chair this joint Scientific Advisory
Board," said Dr. Edward Ashton,
Ph.D., chief scientific officer of VirtualScopics. "Our Board
members are all distinguished opinion leaders from a broad range of
disciplines related to the conduct of imaging in clinical
trials. The Board will meet quarterly and focus on early and
late phase oncology, cardiology, metabolic disorders and
neurology."
About the Scientific Advisory Board Members
Dr. Edward Ashton, Ph.D., has
been the chief scientific officer of VirtualScopics for the past 14
years, with primary technical responsibility for all projects in
both oncology and central nervous system disease. He has extensive
experience in image acquisition and analysis in both biomedical
imaging and military surveillance and reconnaissance. Dr. Ashton
has produced numerous articles and book chapters in the fields of
biomedical imaging with applications to clinical trials and target
detection and image analysis with military applications. He
received both his Ph.D. and MS degrees in electrical engineering
from the University of Rochester, where
his research focused on MRI applications in the brain, and his BS
degree in electrical engineering from Loyola
College.
Dr. Derek Hill, Ph.D., is the
co-founder and chief executive officer of IXICO plc. He co-founded
IXICO in 2004 to bring the best possible imaging technology and
know-how to the pharmaceutical and medical device industries. In
addition to his role at IXICO, Dr. Hill has an academic appointment
as full professor at University College London (UCL). He has been
working on medical image analysis for more than 20 years and has
authored approximately 100 journal papers in this field. His
research track record includes image acquisition and analysis,
image acquisition and analysis for drug discovery and development,
other aspects of image acquisition including motion correction and
partially parallel imaging in MRI and motion compensation in PET.
He has worked on applications in the study of dementia, heart
disease, arthritis, oncology and guiding interventions. He is
actively involved in the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging
Initiative (ADNI) in the U.S., has served on scientific advisory
boards for several pharmaceutical companies and is involved in the
Critical Path Institute's Coalition Against Major Diseases (CAMD)
biomarker qualification initiatives for Alzheimer's Disease and
Parkinson's Disease. Dr. Hill received a BSc degree in
physics at Imperial College, his MSc degree in medical physics at
the University of Surrey and his
Ph.D. in medical image analysis at the Medical School of Guy's
& St. Thomas' Hospitals, University of London.
Dr. Jonathan Riek, Ph.D., joined
the VirtualScopics team in 2001 and is the chief technical officer
of the company, with technical responsibility for all
musculoskeletal and metabolic projects at VirtualScopics. Dr. Riek
has extensive custom software development experience in both
biomedical imaging and consumer imaging. Dr. Riek holds four
patents and has produced several articles on the reduction of
motion artifacts in MRI. Dr. Riek earned his Ph.D., MS and BS
degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Rochester.
Dr. Jeffrey Evelhoch, Ph.D.,
joined Merck Research Laboratories, (MRL), as vice president and
global head of Imaging in Early Stage Development in 2008 to
provide leadership and coordination for the use of preclinical and
clinical imaging resources for all MRL franchises and
functions. He ensures that imaging biomarkers are used
optimally in discovery, early stage and late stage development to
help advance Merck's compounds through to registration. Early
on in his career, Dr. Evelhoch was professor of Internal Medicine,
Oncology and Radiology at Wayne State
University School of Medicine. His research there
centered on novel ways to use in vivo magnetic resonance to
quantify tumor physiology and hemodynamics non-invasively and to
predict and/or monitor tumor response to treatment. Prior to
joining MRL, Dr. Evelhoch worked for several pharmaceutical
companies in senior imaging science roles, including Pharmacia,
Pfizer, and Amgen. Throughout his career, Dr. Evelhoch has actively
published research findings and served on National Institutes of
Health (NIH) review committees. He is currently a member of
the National Cancer Institute's Experimental Therapeutics (NExT)
Special Emphasis Panel. He was named a fellow of the International
Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (ISMRM) in 2003. Dr.
Evelhoch is involved in a number of joint efforts of professional
organizations, industry groups and federal agencies to further the
development and use of quantitative imaging, including the
Biomarker Consortium and the Quantitative Imaging Biomarker
Alliance. He received his Ph.D. in analytical chemistry from the
University of California at Riverside
and was a NIH postdoctoral fellow at Washington University.
Dr. Dirk Reitsma, M.D., joined
PPD in 2010 and is vice president of Global Product Development and
Therapeutic Area Head of Oncology. Dr. Reitsma has extensive
experience in clinical development and during his career has worked
for a number of pharmaceutical companies, including MedImmune,
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Antigenics, Inc.(now Agenus)
and Organon International, Inc. Dr. Reitsma has a particular
interest in clinical trial design, biologics and biosimilars, and
in 2010 he chaired a two-day "Advancing Biologics" meeting in
Brussels where he presented
"Navigating the Challenges of Developing Biosimilars." He is a
frequent speaker, presenter and author on trends and developments
in clinical trial oncology programs. Dr. Reitsma received his
medical degree from Erasmus University
in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. His
Phase I, II and III oncology clinical research experience spans
small molecules and biologics in hematologic malignancies and solid
tumors, including bone metastases.
Dr. Claude Sirlin, M.D., is
currently a professor of Radiology and chief of Body Imaging in the
Department of Radiology at the University of
California at San Diego (UCSD). He directs the Liver Imaging
Group and co-directs the Cancer Imaging Program at UCSD. Dr. Sirlin
also chairs the Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System (LI-RADS)
Committee for the American College of Radiology and is chair of the
Radiology Committee for the NIH-funded Non-Alcoholic
Steatohepatitis Clinical Research Network. His research focuses on
magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT) and
quantitative ultrasound of liver cancer and chronic liver disease.
As chair of the LI-RADS Committee, Dr. Sirlin has helped spearhead
the development and continued refinement of the first comprehensive
system for standardized terminology, interpretation and reporting
of CT and MRI examinations of the liver in patients at risk for
hepatocellular carcinoma. He has published more than 130
manuscripts, 15 book chapters, 150 scientific abstracts, 90
educational exhibits and is a peer reviewer on eight scientific
journals. His research group is funded by NIH and serves as the
radiology coordinating centers for NIH and industry clinical
trials.
Dr. Karl Schwarz, M.D., has been
a professor of Medicine at the University of
Rochester School of Medicine's Cardiology Division since
2007. Dr. Schwarz joined the faculty in 1990 and has been the
director of the adult echocardiography laboratory since 1992. Dr.
Schwarz has been one of the leaders in moving echocardiography from
a qualitative field to a quantitative assessment of cardiovascular
anatomy and physiology. To this end, he has spearheaded the use of
echo contrast for LV volume assessment, modernized the methods used
to assess cardiac valve areas, and has implemented 3D/4D
echocardiography in the transesophageal echocardiography
laboratory. Dr. Schwarz is a recognized expert in the areas of
microbubble echo contrast physics, mechanical circulatory support
and electronic medical records, including medical informatics. He
is co-director of the Cardiovascular Engineering Laboratory at both
the University of Rochester and
Rochester Institute of Technology,
where he holds a secondary appointment as a research professor in
the Kate Gleason College of Engineering. Dr. Schwarz' clinical
research interests are in new applications for ultrasound contrast
agents, new methods for cardiac anatomy and physiology
quantification, and medical informatics. He is the author of the
Pronto Cardiovascular Database System, an electronic medical record
that has been in use at the University of
Rochester and other institutions for almost 25 years.
Recently Dr. Schwarz was funded by Google, Inc. to develop a new
non-invasive home cardiovascular monitoring system.
About VirtualScopics, Inc.
VirtualScopics, Inc.
(NASDAQ: VSCP) is a leading provider of clinical trial imaging
solutions to accelerate drug and medical device development. For
risk-averse, time-constrained Clinical Trial Study Teams, Medical
Directors and Imaging Scientists who require quality imaging data
delivered on-time, within budget and on a consistent basis,
VirtualScopics' clinical trial imaging solutions are an inspired
true-exception to commonly-accepted services provided by other
clinical trial imaging providers. Because of the scientific and
operational flexibility and responsiveness they can offer,
VirtualScopics' clinical trial imaging solutions deliver special
performance advantages compared to other image service providers
that offer common, every day clinical trial imaging services. For
more information on VirtualScopics, please visit
www.virtualscopics.com.
About IXICO plc
IXICO plc (AIM: IXI), the brain health
company, was founded in 2004 with a mission to translate image
acquisition, management and analysis technology and know-how, which
the founders had developed together, into commercial products
targeting the expanding area of imaging to inform decision-making
during drug development. This has resulted in commercially
successful products being launched in the clinical trials (Phase
0-III) and experimental medicine markets and more recently launched
into the wider clinical diagnostic market. Since
incorporation, IXICO has been awarded contracts by nine of the top
15 global pharmaceutical companies as well as leading biotechnology
companies. In October 2013,
IXICO plc was admitted to trading on AIM. More information is
available at www.ixico.com.
Forward-looking Statements
The statements contained in
this press release that are not purely historical are
forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the
Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and are intended to be
covered by the safe harbors created thereby. These forward-looking
statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding
the expected benefits of the Company's investment in infrastructure
and new customer contract signings and awards and/or statements
preceded by, followed by or that include the words "believes,"
"could," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "intends," "plans,"
"projects," "seeks," or similar expressions. Forward-looking
statements deal with the Company's current plans, intentions,
beliefs or expectations. Investors are cautioned that all
forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that
could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the
forward-looking statements. Many of these risks and
uncertainties are discussed in the Company's Annual Report on Form
10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31,
2013 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the
"SEC"), and in any subsequent reports filed with the SEC,
all of which are available at the SEC's website www.sec.gov. These
include without limitation: the risk of cancellation or delay
of customer contracts or specifically as it relates to contract
awards, the risk that they may not get signed. Other risks include
the Company's dependence on its largest customers and risks of
contract performance, protection of our intellectual property and
the risks of infringement of the intellectual rights of others. All
forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press
release and the Company undertakes no obligation to update such
forward-looking statements.
Contact for VirtualScopics, Inc. |
Contact for IXICO,
plc
|
Donna N. Stein, APR,
Fellow PRSA
|
Dr. Derek Hill,
Ph.D.
|
Managing Partner,
Donna Stein & Partners
|
Chief Executive
Officer
|
Phone:
315-361-4672
|
Phone: +44 20
3763 7498
|
Email: dstein1@twcny.rr.com
|
|
SOURCE VirtualScopics, Inc.