Versameb appoints world leading experts in urology to Advisory Board

Appointment of experts to support development of lead candidate VMB-100, an RNA-based therapy for Stress Urinary Incontinence

BASEL, Switzerland, Feb. 24, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Versameb AG ("Versameb"), focused on discovering and developing innovative RNA-based drugs, today announces the formation of an Advisory Board comprised of industry leaders in urology. These include Professor Roger Dmochowski of Vanderbilt University, Professor Margot Damaser of the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, and Assistant Professor Frédéric Birkhäuser of St. Anna and Hirslanden Clinic Lucerne.

Versameb is building a pipeline of promising first-in-class RNA therapeutics leveraging its next generation RNA platform technology, VERSagile. The newly formed Board will provide guidance on the clinical development of its lead candidate, VMB-100, for the treatment of Stress Urinary Incontinence (SUI) currently undergoing advanced preclinical development activities and expected to enter clinical development in the second half of 2022.

Up to 50% of adult women suffer from SUI at some point in their lives with no restorative drug treatment currently approved. The physical changes resulting from pregnancy, childbirth, and menopause are risk factors for the development of SUI. VMB-100 has first-in-class potential and has generated promising pre-clinical data showing muscle tissue regeneration and function restoration of the urinary sphincter.

Klaas Zuideveld, Chief Executive Officer of Versameb, said: "The formation of an Advisory Board marks a significant milestone for Versameb as we progress our lead candidate in Stress Urinary Incontinence towards clinical development. We are delighted and honoured to be working with three world leading experts in the field whose individual expertise and deep knowledge will be especially important as we transition into clinical development."   

Roger Dmochowski is the Professor of Urology, Associate Surgeon in Chief for Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and a world leader in the fields of urology and incontinence. He is a member of the FDA Bone, Reproductive and Urologic Drugs Advisory Committee (BRUDAC) and has co-authored the FDA guidelines for regenerative medicine in urology. He has led and participated in numerous incontinence clinical trials and is the recipient of multiple awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Urodynamics Society for his accomplishments in the clinical treatment of incontinence. He is a Trustee and past President of the American Board of Urology, a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, the American Urological Association, and the International Continence Society. Dr Dmochowski has published over 320 articles, 100 book chapters and 460 abstracts and over 260 presentations at various national and international meetings. He is the Editor-in-Chief of Neurourology and Urodynamics and serves on the editorial board for several scientific journals.

Margot Damaser is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University and Staff in the Glickman Urological & Kidney Institute. In her distinguished career spanning over 25 years, she has studied urinary incontinence and pelvic floor disorders. Her research focuses on the development and testing of novel devices and regenerative approaches for improved diagnosis and treatment of urinary incontinence, voiding dysfunction, and pelvic floor disorders. She has expertise in animal models of stress urinary incontinence and pelvic floor disorders. She received her PhD in Bioengineering from the joint University of California Berkeley and San Francisco Bioengineering Programme. She has published over 150 peer-reviewed scientific papers, has served as a member of National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other grant review study sections, and has served on several national advisory committees including the Advisory Council to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive Diseases and Kidney Disorders (NIDDK) at NIH. Dr. Damaser is a member of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) College of Fellows, an honor reserved for the top 2% of Biomedical Engineers in the US.

Frédéric Birkhäuser is the Co-Lead Urologist at St. Anna and Hirslanden Clinic Lucerne and Consultant Urologist at the Universities of Basel and Berne, Switzerland. He has been co-investigator in numerous urology and uro-oncology clinical trials and published on innovative surgical techniques and immuno-oncological approaches in renal, bladder and prostate cancer. He is an examiner for the European Board of Urology, and member of the Swiss Medical Association, European Association of Urology, Swiss Society of Urology and American Urological Association.

About Versameb

Versameb AG is a privately held biotechnology company focusing on discovering and developing innovative RNA-based drugs for modulation of protein expression, including the ability to simultaneously influence several therapeutic targets, in a controlled manner, with one molecular construct, and cellular targeting. Based in Basel and fully operational from 2018, the company is led by an experienced scientific and leadership team with proven expertise in drug discovery and development from lab bench to patient. Versameb's proprietary technology platform, VERSagile, optimizes the application of functional RNA in different disease contexts – making RNA druggable in new therapeutic areas others have been unable to solve.

The pipeline includes lead candidate programs in Stress Urinary Incontinence (SUI) and solid tumors. Versameb is working towards a first in-human/proof-of-concept clinical study while advancing its platform. More information on Versameb can be found at www.versameb.com as well as on LinkedIn.