NEWARK, N.J., Jan. 13, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Barer
Institute, a collaborative cancer drug development initiative of
Rafael Holdings, Inc., (NYSE: RFL), today announced the slate of
highly regarded scientific and business leaders that will serve as
its founding Board of Directors.
The Board will be chaired by Howard
Jonas, the Chairman and CEO of Rafael Holdings.
"The Barer Institute is pursuing tremendously promising
approaches to develop innovative cancer metabolism therapies," said
Howard Jonas. "I am pleased to
announce that Sol Barer, Ph.D.,
Richard Axel, M.D., Arthur Levitt, Sanjeev
Luther and Michael Weiss,
M.D., Ph.D., are guiding this effort as members of the Barer
Institute's Board of Directors. In addition to lending his
name to the Institute, Dr. Barer has generously offered to provide
strategic direction to the Institute's development and
collaboration efforts."
Sol J. Barer, Ph.D., is
Chairman of the Board of Teva Pharmaceuticals, Chairman of
Centrexion Therapeutics, Lead Director of Contrafect Corp, Chairman
of Neximmune, Board member of 3DBioteherapeutics and Aevi Genomic
Therapeutics, Founding Chair of the Hackensack Meridian Center for
Discovery and Innovation, and advisor to the Israel Biotech Fund.
Dr. Barer is a co-founder of Celgene Corporation and served as
Celgene's Executive Chairman, President, CEO, and COO.
Richard Axel, M.D., is the
recipient of the 2004 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
He is University Professor in the departments of neuroscience,
biochemistry and molecular biophysics, and pathology at
Columbia University, Co-director of the
Zuckerman Institute Howard Hughes Medical Institute in the
Columbia University College of Physicians and
Surgeons and Investigator in the Howard Hughes Medical
Institute.
Arthur Levitt, Jr. served
as the 25th Chairman of the United States Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC) from 1993 to 2001 – the longest tenure of any SEC
Chairman. He also served as Chairman of the American Stock
Exchange and a senior advisor to the Carlyle Group. Mr.
Levitt is currently a member of the board of Bloomberg LP, and a
Senior Advisor to the Promontory Financial Group, an IMB
Company.
Sanjeev Luther is the CEO
of Rafael Pharmaceuticals, the developer of CPI-613®
(devimistat), a cancer metabolism-based drug. Mr. Luther brings
more than 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry,
having worked at Bristol-Myers Squibb, Novartis, Bausch and Lomb,
GE Healthcare and Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals. Under Mr. Luther's
leadership, Rafael Pharmaceuticals has significantly advanced its
strategy, business portfolio and clinical development, leading to
two pivotal Phase 3 trials for patients with metastatic pancreatic
cancer and relapsed / refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and
over a dozen other early and late stage clinical trials. Mr. Luther
is also Chairman of the Board of LipoMedix, an early stage
pharmaceutical development company in which Rafael Holdings owns a
majority interest.
Michael J. Weiss, M.D.,
Ph.D., has been on staff as an ophthalmologist with the Edward
S. Harkness Eye Institute since 1985 and has served as a director
of Uveitis Service since July 1987.
Dr. Weiss is a Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology at Columbia University Medical Center and was Board
Certified in Ophthalmology in June
1987. Dr. Weiss received a Bachelor of Science from
Bar-Ilan University, Israel in 1972, a Ph.D. from Columbia University School of Arts and Sciences in
1976 and a M.D. from Columbia College
of Physicians and Surgeons in 1981. Dr. Weiss also did a
Post-Graduate Fellowship at Columbia
University Institute of Cancer Research from 1976-1977.
About Rafael Holdings, Inc.:
Rafael Holdings holds
commercial real estate assets and interests in clinical stage
pharmaceutical companies. The real estate holdings consist of
properties in Newark and
Piscataway, New Jersey and
Jerusalem, Israel. The
pharmaceutical holdings include interests in two companies focused
on the development and commercialization of oncology drugs:
Rafael Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and LipoMedix Pharmaceuticals Ltd. In
addition, Rafael Holdings through its wholly owned subsidiary, the
Barer Institute, is developing a pipeline of therapeutic
compounds including compounds to regulate cancer metabolism. For
more information, visit www.rafaelholdings.com.
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SOURCE Rafael Holdings, Inc.