- Company to appoint Prof. Arun J.
Sanyal as the new Chairman of HistoIndex's Scientific
Advisory Board, bringing unparalleled expertise to guide future
innovations.
- Prof. Vlad Ratziu joins the Scientific Advisory Board to
strengthen the Company's global scientific leadership in liver
disease management.
- HistoIndex's AI-driven solutions qFibrosis, qSteatosis, and
qBallooning can standardize assessments in MASH clinical trials,
improving drug efficacy evaluations and patient screening
processes.
SINGAPORE, July 1, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- HistoIndex, a global leader in digital pathology
solutions for the management of chronic liver disease, is pleased
to announce changes to its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB).
Established in 2017 under the leadership of the late Dr.
Stephen A. Harrison, the SAB has
played a crucial role in guiding HistoIndex's research and
development efforts. Current members include Prof. Arun J. Sanyal, Prof. Quentin Anstee, Prof. Wei Lai, and Prof. Jacob
George.
New SAB Appointments
Prof. Arun J. Sanyal, a professor
of Medicine, Physiology, and Molecular Pathology at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) School of
Medicine, has been appointed as the new Chairman of HistoIndex's
SAB. Also serving as the Director of the Stravitz-Sanyal Institute
for Liver Disease and Metabolic Health at VCU, Prof. Sanyal's
leadership spans multiple prestigious roles as Chair of the NIH
NASH Clinical Research Network, the NIMBLE consortium, and the
Liver Forum. A continuous NIH grant recipient since 1995, Prof.
Sanyal brings well over 500 publications in leading journals to the
role, placing him in the top 0.1% of biomedical scientists
globally. "I am honored to lead HistoIndex's Scientific Advisory
Board," said Prof. Sanyal. "Our collective expertise will
drive innovative solutions in chronic liver disease management,
pushing the boundaries of scientific discovery to improve patient
outcomes."
Prof. Vlad Ratziu, a professor of Hepatology at Sorbonne
University and the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital in Paris, also joined the SAB. With over 400
publications and an H-index of 96, Prof. Ratziu is a prominent
researcher in steatotic liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma.
He has played key roles in numerous MASH therapeutic trials and
European research consortia, and is the incoming Editor-in-Chief of
the Journal of Hepatology, a leading liver disease publication and
the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) flagship
journal. "HistoIndex's technology has ushered in a new era in
quantifying liver injury. The Company's commitment to innovation
and collaboration among industry and academic leaders aligns
perfectly with my scientific pursuits. I am thrilled to join the
scientific board under Prof. Sanyal's leadership and contribute to
innovative work benefiting MASH patients."
Remembering Dr. Stephen A.
Harrison
As we embrace these new changes, we also pause to honor and
remember the exceptional contributions of our late chairman, Dr.
Stephen A. Harrison, a visionary
leader in metabolic disease. His foresight to leverage AI for
disease assessment in 2014 propelled HistoIndex's digital pathology
solutions to the forefront of liver disease management. Dr.
Gideon Ho, CEO of HistoIndex,
reflected, "Stephen was more than our chairman; he was a true
pioneer and mentor whose persistence and guidance brought our
technology to maturation for enhanced patient care. His legacy will
continue to inspire our work as we expand the applications of our
platform technology to other diseases."
Innovative AI Tools
HistoIndex's pioneering AI-based image quantitative tools,
qFibrosis and qSteatosis, have been incorporated in over 25 MASH
clinical trials and demonstrated greater sensitivity in drug
efficacy evaluations and patient stratification. Building on the
same AI foundations, the
Company developed qBallooning, which improved
concordance among expert pathologists in ballooned hepatocyte
evaluations. "Developing qBallooning is a significant step in
standardizing and improving the evaluation of liver biopsies in
MASH clinical research and practice," said Dr. Dean Tai, Chief Scientific Officer. "With these
advancements and our strengthened SAB, HistoIndex is poised to
accelerate liver disease drug
development and diagnosis breakthroughs."
About MASLD and MASH
Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease
(MASLD), previously known as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
(NAFLD), is a condition characterized by the buildup of fat in the
liver in the absence of harmful alcohol intake. MASLD is closely
associated with obesity, type 2 diabetes, and other metabolic
disorders. It represents a spectrum of liver disorders ranging from
simple steatosis (steatotic liver disease) to a more severe form
known as metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH),
formerly referred to as non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).
MASH is a progressive form of MASLD characterized by liver
inflammation and damage, which can lead to fibrosis (scarring),
cirrhosis, liver failure, and an increased risk of liver cancer.
The presence of ballooned hepatocytes (enlarged and damaged liver
cells) is a key feature distinguishing MASH from simple steatosis.
Pathologist assessments of liver
biopsy remains the gold standard for diagnosing and assessing the
severity of MASH. Histological categorial scoring systems are often
used as surrogate endpoints to evaluate drug efficacy in clinical
trials. These endpoints are limited in capturing the complex and
heterogeneous nature of the disease. As a result, there is a
growing need for more accurate and reliable tools, such as AI-based
digital pathology solutions, to improve the assessment of treatment
response and disease severity in MASH.
About qFibrosis®, qSteatosis®, and qBallooning®
Current semi-quantitative histologic assessments of MASH are
limited in precision for detecting subtle changes and introduce
intra- and inter-observer variability. This impacts clinical trial
recruitment and evaluation of drug efficacy. qFibrosis®,
qSteatosis®, and qBallooning® are advanced tools that provide
quantitative, continuous measures of key MASH features. Developed
using the NASH-CRN scoring system as the reference standard, these
tools quantitatively assess architectural parameters of collagen
fibers, fat vacuoles, and hepatocytes to evaluate each histological
feature optimally. As automated solutions, they offer enhanced
reproducibility, precision, and sensitivity in determining disease
severity and treatment responses, making them invaluable in
clinical trials and research settings.
About HistoIndex
Founded in 2010, HistoIndex is a pioneer in stain-free,
fully automated imaging solutions for visualizing and quantifying
fibrosis in tissue biopsies. By combining cutting-edge biophotonic
technology with AI-based analysis, HistoIndex provides innovative
tools that transform research, expedite pharmaceutical drug
development, and set new medical standards.
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