Immunology

CSL Behring and Seattle Children’s Research Institute to Advance Gene Therapy Treatments for Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases – P&T Community

SEATTLE and KING of PRUSSIA, Pa., June 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --Seattle Children's Research Institute, one of the top pediatric research institutions in the world, and global biotechnology leader CSL Behring announced a strategic alliance to develop stem cell gene therapies for primary immunodeficiency diseases.

Initially, the alliance will focus on the development of treatment options for patients with two rare, life-threatening primary immunodeficiency diseases -- Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome and X-linked Agammaglobulinemia. These are two of more than 400 identified primary immunodeficiency diseases in which a part of the body's immune system is missing or functions improperly.

"CSL Behring will collaborate with Seattle Children's experts to apply our novel gene therapy technology to their research pipeline, with an aim to address unmet needs for people living with certain rare primary immunodeficiency diseases," said Bill Mezzanotte, MD, Executive Vice President, Head of Research and Development for CSL Behring. "Expanding our gene therapy portfolio into an area of immunology well known to CSL exemplifies how we are strategically growing our capabilities in this strategic scientific platform and are collaborating with world class institutions to access innovation with the potential to vastly improve patients' lives."

"Stem cell gene therapies that correct the genetic abnormality driving a child's disease will transform the therapeutic options for children with Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome, X-Linked Agammaglobulinemia and other immunodeficiency diseases,"said David J. Rawlings, MD, director of the Center for Immunity and Immunotherapies and division chief of immunology at Seattle Children's, and a professor of pediatrics and immunology at the University of Washington School of Medicine."The collaboration with CSL Behring supports our longstanding research programs for pediatric immunodeficiency diseases and will accelerate this research toward clinical trials, helping get these innovations to the children who need them."

CSL Behring researchers, working with researchers from Seattle Children's Research Institute, will investigate applying the proprietary platform technologies, Select+ and Cytegrity, to several pre-clinical gene therapy programs. These technologies, which have broad applications in ex vivo stem cell gene therapy, are designed to address some of the major challenges associated with the commercialization of stem cell therapy, including the ability to manufacture consistent, high-quality products, and to improve engraftment, efficacy and tolerability.

Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome (WAS) has an estimated incidence between one and 10 cases per million males worldwide, according to the National Institutes of Health. WAS patients' immune systems function abnormally, making them susceptible to infections. They also experience eczema, autoimmunity and difficulty forming blood clots, leaving them vulnerable to life threatening bleeding complications. Today the only knowncurefor WAS is a stem cell transplant, if a suitable donor can be found.

X-linked Agammaglobulinemia (XLA) is another rare primary immunodeficiency in which patients have low levels of immunoglobulins (also known as antibodies), which are key proteins made by the immune system to help fight infections. Like WAS, XLA affects males almost exclusively, although females can be genetic carriers of the condition. While no cure exists for XLA, the goal of treatment is to boost the immune system by replacing missing antibodies and preventing or aggressively treating infections that occur, according to the Immune Deficiency Foundation.

About Seattle Children's

Seattle Children's mission is to provide hope, care and cures to help every child live the healthiest and most fulfilling life possible. Together, Seattle Children's Hospital, Research Institute and Foundation deliver superior patient care, identify new discoveries and treatments through pediatric research, and raise funds to create better futures for patients.

Ranked as one of the top children's hospitals in the country by U.S. News & World Report, Seattle Children's serves as the pediatric and adolescent academic medical center for Washington, Alaska, Montana and Idaho the largest region of any children's hospital in the country. As one of the nation's top five pediatric research centers, Seattle Children's Research Institute is internationally recognized for its work in neurosciences, immunology, cancer, infectious disease, injury prevention and much more. Seattle Children's Hospital and Research Foundation works with the Seattle Children's Guild Association, the largest all-volunteer fundraising network for any hospital in the country, to gather community support and raise funds for uncompensated care and research. Join Seattle Children's bold initiative It Starts With Yes: The Campaign for Seattle Children's to transform children's health for generations to come.

For more information, visit seattlechildrens.org or follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or on our On the Pulse blog.

About CSL Behring

CSL Behring is a global biotherapeutics leader driven by its promise to save lives. Focused on serving patients' needs by using the latest technologies, we develop and deliver innovative therapies that are used to treat coagulation disorders, primary immune deficiencies, hereditary angioedema, inherited respiratory disease, and neurological disorders. The company's products are also used in cardiac surgery, burn treatment and to prevent hemolytic disease of the newborn. CSL Behring operates one of the world's largest plasma collection networks, CSL Plasma. The parent company, CSL Limited (ASX:CSL;USOTC:CSLLY), headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, employs more than 26,000 people, and delivers its life-saving therapies to people in more than 70 countries. For more information, visit http://www.cslbehring.com and for inspiring stories about the promise of biotechnology, visit Vita http://www.cslbehring.com/Vita.

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CSL Behring and Seattle Children's Research Institute to Advance Gene Therapy Treatments for Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases - P&T Community

Immunology

Dr. Amir Bajoghli’s Article on Shiitake Mushroom Dermatitis Featured in Premier Immunology Publication – IT Business Net

MCLEAN, VA / ACCESSWIRE / May 29, 2020 / The shiitake is an edible mushroom native to East Asia. The popularity of these mushrooms has increased over the years in the United States and with it has been a rise in allergic skin reactions to this relatively new ingredient on the American culinary landscape.

Shiitake flagellate dermatitis, also known as toxicoderma, is an allergic reaction related to the ingestion of raw or undercooked shiitake mushrooms. Signs of this dermatologic condition include skin eruptions resembling scratch or whiplash marks. This skin reaction occurs in approximately 2-3% of people who eat undercooked or raw shiitake mushrooms.

Various theories exist as to how and why this type reaction occurs with some people who eat the undercooked forms of the edible fungus.

When Dr. Amir Bajoghli of Skin & Laser Dermatology Center recently treated such a case in his practice, he realized it was of importance to share his medical findings regarding the patient with the scientific community. He wrote up the details of this Shiitake mushroom dermatitis. These findings were published in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, the premier publication for allergic and immunologic diseases.

Dr. Bajoghli is honored to publish the case with his father, Dr. Mehdi Bajoghli, a practicing allergist in Northern Virginia.

Dr. Amir Bajoghli has been active in the practice of dermatology and laser surgery since the completion of his training at the combined Tufts University and Boston University. He regularly presents lectures to other physicians regionally and internationally, and teaches medical students and dermatology residents at Georgetown University.

Dr. Amir Bajoghli can be reached at either of his Virginia offices:

McLean:1359 Beverly Rd., 2nd FloorMcLean, VA 22101(703) 893-1114

Woodbridge:2200 Opitz Blvd., Suite 100Woodbridge, VA 22191(703) 492-4140

SOURCE: Skin and Laser Dermatology Center

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Immunology

Viola Ventures is Seeking Technologies that Combine AI and Fundamental Scientific Disciplines – CTech

Zvika Orron, a partner at Israeli early-stage venture capital firm Viola Ventures, is clearly a big believer in the potential of computational biology. So much so that he believes the AI disruption proven in traditional industries such as the automotive industry that led to the huge success story of Mobileye, which in 2017 was acquired by Intel for $15.3 billion in the largest deal Israel's tech industry has seen to date, could potentially repeat itself in the biology space.

One company hoping to one day be the next Mobileye is Israeli startup Immunai. Orron was part of the Viola and TLV Partners team that earlier this month led the companys $20 million seed round.

"The volume of data generated through modern biological research is growing exponentially and opening a great opportunity to leverage AI for providing deeper and more accurate insights to solve complex problems at a faster pace," said Orron.

Immunai was founded in January 2019 by Noam Solomon (CEO) and Luis Voloch (CTO) who were joined by Ansuman Satpathy, a professor of cancer immunology at Stanford University, Danny Wells, a current member of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, and Dan Littman, a professor of molecular immunology at New York University, all three of whom joined the team as founding scientists.

Immunai is developing a technological platform that aims to map the entire immune system for better detection, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, which according to Orron has the potential to disrupt the entire pharmaceutical ecosystem.

"Mobileye is an example of how AI technology, in this case, computer vision, can disrupt an entire industry. Mobileye could have just settled for providing computer vision services to camera companies or sold its computer vision as standalone software. But instead, it chose to develop an entire end-to-end system and disrupt the auto industry. Immunai also wants to cause disruption throughout the pharma industry with its AI solution by not only providing the immune system profiling but leveraging the data as a first step to pull out insights and provide a platform that will enable a range of applications. The companies are very similar to each other in that way," Orron told CTech earlier this week. "The second similarity is that both are trying to solve multi-disciplinary problems. Mobileye needs algorithm developers, hardware developers, as well as physicists, as it is trying to solve a very complex problem. And on top of that, you need someone to bring this all together with quality system engineering and make sure it works. If there is one thing that Israel is blessed with it is system engineers. That ability to combine different disciplines and turn them into a product with the right performance and place it on the right course is essential, as is the multidisciplinary factor. With Immunai you have three disciplines that must all work together. There are the biologists who analyze the data in the lab, there is the computational biology layer and on top of that, there is the layer of AI."

Orron explained that the working premises in biology are currently fairly established and now with AI it is possible to take these premises and prove them on more use cases and diseases.

"In any basic blood test you can identify many unique elements in our immune system. Immunai essentially profiles a person's immune system,"

Orron said. "And if you know all about someone's immune system you can, in theory, identify different diseases or you can, for example, tell an oncology patient which treatment is best for them, also known as companion diagnostics. You can also help the pharma companies move a lot faster in their clinical trials and ultimately develop drugs quicker."

Leveraging single-cell technologies and machine learning algorithms, Immunai has mapped out millions of immune cells and their functions, building the largest proprietary data set in the world for clinical immunological data.

"Biology expertise is becoming more and more granular and when looking for the best researchers in the world, founders may need to look outside the Israeli market. But in today's world you can set up a global company in which the AI tech could come from Israel and the biological research from across the globe," added Orron. "In Immunai's case, the founders are mathematicians by training and they joined forces with biologists from Stanford and the Parker Institute in New York. We are seeing more and more AI entrepreneurs turning their sights to the field of biology and partnering with researchers outside of Israel."

The emergence of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic combined with the ever-declining cost of DNA sequencing has put companies of the likes of Immunai in prime position to establish themselves in the post-corona world.

"The price of DNA sequencing is decreasing exponentially and regulation is always evolving. During the era of Covid-19 all kinds of regulatory elements were eased in order to reach a vaccine as quickly as possible. Once these two developments coincide there is suddenly a lot of data available as many clinical trials are taking place. And this allows AI to enter the picture and help accelerate the development of medicines and new diagnostic tools," said Orron. "Medicine is currently the ideal place for AI, both from a financial and a technological standpoint."

Orron added that Viola's interest in computational biology is rapidly expanding and that it is also on the lookout for innovative AI solutions combining computer science with other fundamental scientific disciplines.

"We really believe in computational biology and we want to continue and invest in this field. Israel is very new to this field, with the U.S. for example far more advanced. But this is the time to invest in Israel because we are seeing many quality entrepreneurs looking in this direction. There is great potential in Israel. We are also checking out other fields in which there is a combination of computer science with other scientific disciplines like chemistry, physics, or biology. Specifically, we want to see how AI can accelerate a known scientific phenomenon and enable business driven solutions. Right now, most of our focus is on physics and biology. In physics, for example, we are looking at the world of quantum computing which combines computer science with physics. We really believe in this multidisciplinary thesis of combining fundamental science with computer science."

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Viola Ventures is Seeking Technologies that Combine AI and Fundamental Scientific Disciplines - CTech

Immunology

Why AbbVie Could Have the Most Upside Among Big Pharma Stocks – 24/7 Wall St.

Healthcare Business

Jon C. Ogg

Some mergers can add a nice shot in the arm for an acquirer. After years of being focused on Humira, AbbVie Inc. (NYSE: ABBV) has now completed its acquisition of Allergan Inc. (NYSE: AGN), which brings existing sales and an additional product pipeline down the road.

Analysts on Wall Street in general have issued higher upside projections ahead of and in the wake of this mergers completion. While SVB Leerink may have the highest analyst target price on AbbVie of $122, the independent research firm Argus has issued one of the highest price targets that has been seen in some time.

24/7 Wall St.s top analyst calls of the day included that Argus raised its rating to Buy from Hold and offered a $115 price target. This target is handily higher than Refinitivs $97.00 consensus price target. While this is one of the most aggressive calls in the stock, it also would represent more upside than has been seen in the other major pharma and mega-cap biotechs.

The difference between an independent research firm like Argus and a traditional brokerage firm with underwriters is that Argus gets no investment banking fees from the companies. Investors should understand that AbbVies new Buy rating is a shorter term call. The firm was quick to point out that its long-term rating is Hold.

After completion of the merger with Allergan, Argus noted that the portfolio expansion includes a growing oncology franchise that is anchored by Imbruvica and Venclexta. It also noted Skyrizi and Rinvoq as two growth drivers in the immunology space. Allergan is said to add strengths in medical aesthetics, neuroscience, eye care and womens health.

One other issue to consider is that Allergan shares and its consensus price target are both still lower than when it was named among 20 undervalued ESG stocks. That call was right before the major sell-off turned into the instant recession under COVID-19.

Argus also sees AbbVie generating substantial cash flow that supports the dividend with its 5%-plus yield. The cash flow is also said to support developing, acquiring and collaborating on new product candidates for the future. The Argus report said this:

AbbVies merger with Allergan (completed in May) provides the combined company with an expanded portfolio of commercial products along with additional pipeline products that should help to drive future growth. Allergans portfolio is anchored by Botox, which has both aesthetics and therapeutic indications (such as migraine). In addition, two recently launched immunology drugs (Skyrizi and Rinvoq) are gaining traction and market share in their respective indications. These drugs, which are posting stronger sales than we had expected, complement Humira in autoimmune indications.

There are other blockbusters in the Allergan and AbbVie mix to consider here. The Argus report further said:

The company also has a growing oncology franchise, anchored by Imbruvica and Venclexta, both of which have become blockbuster products. Imbruvica and Venclexta together generated more than $5.2 billion in sales in 2019. Venclexta is growing sales at a more than 100% annual rate (reaching $317 million in Q1-2020), reflecting approval for additional indications. In addition to the strong product portfolio, we note that the stock carries a yield of about 5.1%, which we view as very attractive during a period of market volatility and economic uncertainty.

Tuesdays new analyst call is much stronger than most analysts give (in the 8% to 10% range) in new ratings for Dow Jones industrials or S&P 500 companies. The Argus call projects 26% upside, before even getting into the 5% dividend yield for total return investors.

AbbVie shares traded up 0.4% at $91.10 on Tuesday. Its 52-week range is $62.55 to $97.86.

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Immunology

Pittsburgh researcher says potential vaccines are being undermined by misinformation – wausaupilotandreview.com

By Oliver Morrison | Public Source Media

The state of COVID-19 vaccine research is currently in a Catch-22 dilemma, according to Dr. William Klimstra, an associate professor in the Immunology Department at the University of Pittsburgh, who is currently working on a potential vaccine.

The dilemma is this: The reason the development of a vaccine takes so long is that scientists have to be careful the vaccine does no harm in animals first and then in humans, before it even begins to test whether its effective. But at the same time, many Americans are not convinced that a vaccine would be safe and have said they wouldnt take it even if it was developed.

Were in an environment right now where longstanding accepted truths are being challenged through social media, Klimstra said. Its very difficult to fight that kind of stuff.

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Physiology

UW-Green Bay, Manitowoc Professor has been helping intelligent lab rats find good homes for the last 20 years | Good News Network – UWGB

Dozens of lab rats have been given happy retirements thanks to a professor of physiology and biology in Wisconsin.

Prof. Richard Hein of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, Manitowoc Campus has been helping his lab rats find forever homes after his first and second-year students complete their introduction to anatomy courses.

Source: For the Last 20 Years, College Professor Has Been Helping Intelligent Lab Rats Find Good Homes | Good News Network

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UW-Green Bay, Manitowoc Professor has been helping intelligent lab rats find good homes for the last 20 years | Good News Network - UWGB

Physiology

In memoriam gift to the Academy celebrates the life and work of Professor Sally Smith – Australian Academy of Science

May 29, 2020

Academy Fellow Professor Andrew Smith recently made a donation in memory of his wife Professor Sally Smith FAA to support two Academy awards for PhD students and early- to mid-career researchers. The awards are the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Scientist Travelling Research Award and the Max Day Environmental Science Fellowship Award.

Andrew said that Sallyunderstood the challenges of being a young researcher and it is fitting that this gift supports these awards.

Sally died suddenly in September 2019, aged 78, after a distinguished research career based at the University of Adelaide. Sally, who was elected to the Academy in 2001, was a world authority on soil-plant reactions. Andrew and daughters Caroline and Hilary decided that these Academy awards fit well with Sallys ongoing commitment to train and mentor young scientists as they seek to develop their research careers, and to the importance of travel to establish links in research. They were attracted by the emphasis on multi-disciplinary research involving environmental science and thatespecially in the case of the relatively new Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Awardthey can extend into social sciences.

An unusual honour, announced soon after Sallys death, was her inclusion in a select list of just 46 women associated with the University of Adelaide from many walks of life who have helped blaze the trail for gender equality.

In her own words, Sally said that her career: depended on accidents, incredible mentors and collaborators, persistence and a hefty measure of good luck. For younger scientists she said: Never give up and collaborate whenever you can. She summarised her career in an invited profile, published in New Phytologist, a prominent journal with which she had a long association (New Phytologist 2019, 221: 648-9).

Professor Tim Cavagnaro, formerly Sallys PhD student, who went on to work overseas and is now back at the University of Adelaide as leader of the Soil Ecology group on the Waite campus, writes:

Sally took a physiologists approach to her research; that is, she wanted to know how things work. And when experiments did not work she would advise that it was all part of lifes rich tapestry. Sally used many tools and techniques in her research, including whole plant physiology, molecular biology, morphological studies, mycorrhiza defective mutants, and isotope tracing.

The Academy gratefully acknowledges this generous gift that will provide research opportunities to young researchers for many years to come through its annual Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Scientist Travelling Research Awardand Max Day Environmental Science Fellowship Award.

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In memoriam gift to the Academy celebrates the life and work of Professor Sally Smith - Australian Academy of Science

Physiology

ZLI’s Beached Campaign to Combat Bigotry in Wildlife Conservation – CSRwire.com

NEW YORK, Jun. 02 /CSRwire/ - The Zoological Lighting Institute (ZLI) has announced ZLIs Beached Campaign to overcome the structural and cultural bigotries that hinder animal sciences. Formed as an initiative to provide photobiology grants for researchers and animal keepers studying whales and dolphins, ZLIs Beached Campaign recognizes the challenges that racial, cultural and economic bias pose for viable scientific communication and dialogue. Grant applications for aid are due to ZLI by 1 August 2020, with an online monthly lecture and symposium series set to begin on 9 September, 2020.

Wildlife conservation has not been immune to the challenges of bigotry, no more so than other areas of life. Bias takes root at least three levels across the environmentally necessary sciences of light and life; by influencing the sciences directly and changing the questions researchers ask, in limiting participation of who gets to ask questions, and also by limiting the desire to apply the knowledge of science inclusively.ZLIs Beached Campaignbegan by mobilizing stakeholder offense at anti-asian racism prevalent in media such asWhale WarsandThe Cove, but the challenges that bias and bigotry present for science in general have root in a much wider and deeper history that continues to harm us today.

Structural bias and racism in environmentalism and the sciences has to be confronted it cannot be left to chance or simply ignored as a reflection of our times remarked ZLI Executive Director Dr. James Karl Fischer PhD. ZLI had chosen whales, specifically the deep diving Black Bairds Beaked Whale identified in Japan in 2019, as an icon of an animal capable of creating vision in an incredible range of environmental circumstances. Whales too, are so important to so many people around the globe, identified in histories and cultures sporting figures as diverse as Paikea, Ahab, Bake-kujira, Willie, Pinocchios Monstro and with a sleight of hand, Jonah. This diversity of appreciation and engagement are a vital aspect of civil human life, and it is far different than bias and bigotry which seeks to unify understanding under intractable one-sided violence. Engagement, not division, remains the touchstone of this campaign.

ZLIs Beached Campaign is set to fund research in the form of grants, scholarships and pending additional funding, a potential post-doctoral position within the Institute itself. The Awards Committee will consider projects studying cetaceans of all species, including a distinct PhotoDiversity Award for the encouragement of diversity in science as has been the case in years past. ZLIs PhotoSciences Research funds exploration in photo-physiology, sensory ecology and light based community interactions (integrative photo-biology). Candidates for the initial grant distribution will be selected on 1 August 2020.

ZLI perpetually seeks candidates for ZLIs Beached Campaign lecture series and symposium with letters of inquiry sent to beached@zoolighting.org also due by 1 August for the fall season. ZLIs Beached Campaign also will feature an upcoming documentary Beached, to begin shooting in New Bedford (USA), New Zealand and Japan in conjunction with PhotoDiversity Films, as soon as investments and sponsorships are secured.

For more information about ZLIs Beached Campaign, and to learn how to sponsor or donate to help whales while encouraging diversity and engagement, please do visit << www.zoolighting.org >>. For an immediate response contact ZLI directly at beached@zoolighting.org, and ask to speak with one of ZLIs Beached Campaign Committee Leaders.

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Physiology

New interview series examines the future of energy amid COVID-19 | Stanford News – Stanford University News

Stanford Universitys Precourt Institute for Energy will launch a series of live interviews with global thought leaders on the future of energy every other Tuesday starting June 9.

Former U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz will be the Global Energy Dialogues first guest on June 9. (Image credit: Bryce Vickmark)

The first three guests will be Ernest Moniz on June 9, Steven Chu on June 23, and Charles Chad Holliday on July 7. Moniz, an emeritus professor of physics and engineering at MIT, was the 13th U.S. secretary of energy from 2013 to 2017. Chu, a professor of physics and of molecular and cellular physiology at Stanford, was the 12th U.S. secretary of energy from 2009 to 2013. Holliday is chair of the board of directors of Royal Dutch Shell, former chief executive officer of DuPont, as well as former chair of Bank of America Corp. and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.

The Global Energy Dialogues will focus on how the energy sector can help the world recover from the economic crisis due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Arun Majumdar and Sally Benson, co-directors of Stanfords Precourt Institute for Energy. Benson and Majumdar will together interview Moniz and conduct many of the subsequent interviews.

While the short-term health and economic challenges of COVID must be addressed immediately, it would be prudent to also tackle mid- to long-term issues that are likely to remain unchanged, said Majumdar. Energys environmental impacts must be reduced with fierce urgency to prevent their adverse impacts on human life and our global economy, not unlike COVID-19. Addressing this dual challenge of energy access and environmental impact is the defining issue of the 21st century.

Many of the guests were scheduled to speak at Stanfords Global Energy Forum in May, but that conference has been postponed due to the pandemic. The new series will be free and open to the public online. Registration is required.

The discussions will address recovering from the pandemic while making our energy systems sustainable, secure and affordable for everyone, said Benson.

There seems to be a growing consensus that COVID-19 is such a shock to the world that we may well be entering a new and, as yet, undefined normal, said Benson. This may offer a rare opportunity to rethink our approach to the dual challenge of making modern energy accessible to everyone while greatly reducing energys environmental impact.

Some of the questions the new series hopes to answer include: How can we recover from such an economic crisis and how long will it take? Since energy use is the foundation of all modern economies, can the energy sector play a role in this recovery process and, if so, how? What will the new normal be, and what steps should we take now to prepare ourselves for this new future? Are there lessons from history from past crises that can inform us now? Will some of the current changes, for example, the increased use of digital technology, become somewhat permanent, and if so, what effect will that have on the energy sector?

The live interviews, which will be webcast usually from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. PST, will also be recorded and posted online for future viewing. The interviews will be conducted by Stanford faculty, staff or a member of Precourt Institutes advisory council. The interviews will also involve a discussion with Stanford students. Viewers can ask questions, but the questions will be filtered and managed by a team before they are put forward to the session moderator.

The Global Energy Dialogues are funded by the Stanford Global Energy Forum.

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Physiology

Kenneth Wallace Promoted to Full Professor at Clarkson University – Clarkson University News

Kenneth Wallace

Clarkson University President Tony Collins has announced that Kenneth Wallace has been promoted from associate professor to full professor of biology in the School of Arts & Sciences. Promotion to professor is considered to be virtually the highest honor that a university can bestow upon its faculty.

Wallace's research focuses on the development of the digestive system and effects of nanoparticles exposure. Wallace uses zebrafish, which are an excellent model research organism, with extensive similarities to the genetics and physiology of human organ development with broad implications for human development and disease states.

The intestinal epithelium continuously replaces cells that undergo apoptosis. Cells proliferate in the crypts at the base of the villi to replace lost epithelial cells. While there is intense investigation into the signals controlling proliferation of crypt epithelial cells, little is known about the formation of the developing stem cell niche. Wallace is investigating epithelial cells that play a role in regulation proliferation of the developing stem cell niche using zebrafish as a model system.

Wallace's research also investigates the effects of nanoparticle exposure using the zebrafish model system in collaboration with Chemistry Professor Silvana Andreescu. Developmental defects and physiological changes are assessed following exposure to nanoparticles with different physiochemical properties. Electrochemical sensors developed in Dr. Andreescus lab are used to detect nitric oxide and reactive oxygen species following exposure.

Wallace has published numerous highly cited papers and has delivered presentations at many international conferences. He is currently funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development at the National Institutes of Health. He was previously funded by the National Institute if Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases as well as the NSF. He was inducted to the million dollar club in 2019 (Clarkson). Wallace has mentored 12 graduate students and 50 undergraduates in research.

Wallace has been a faculty member in the Department of Biology at Clarkson since 2004. Prior to that he was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania Department of Medicine.

He received his Ph.D. in molecular genetics from Ohio State University and his bachelor of science degree in molecular genetics from the University of Rochester.

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