CAMBRIDGE, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–DEM BioPharma, Inc. an immune-oncology company developing therapies that target signals on cancer cells and macrophages to eliminate cancer, today announced the addition of Miriam Merad, M.D., Ph.D., to its Scientific Advisory Board.
“Dr. Merad is an internationally renowned physician-scientist and a leader in myeloid biology focused on identifying innate immune cells that can be harnessed to treat cancer and other human diseases,” said Nenad Grmusa, CEO of DEM Bio. “We are excited to welcome her to DEM Bio and look forward to benefiting from her expertise and guidance as we further the development of our platform and advance novel targets towards oncology therapeutic development.”
“DEM Bio’s platform is built on a cutting-edge scientific foundation, and the company’s unique approach of discovering and targeting novel ‘don’t eat me’ (DEM) and ‘eat me’ (EM) signals on cancer cells and macrophages has the potential to reveal unexplored immune pathways for treating cancer,” said Dr. Merad. “I am delighted to join this team of innovators and help advance DEM Bio’s immuno-oncology drug target portfolio.”
Dr. Merad is the Director of the Precision Immunology Institute at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York and the Director of the Mount Sinai Human Immune Monitoring Center (HIMC), which she founded. Her research over the past 20 years has focused on understanding the mechanisms that control the development and functional identity of dendritic cells and macrophages during homeostasis, and examining how these regulations are changed in cancer and inflammatory diseases. Dr. Merad is credited with identifying the tissue resident macrophage lineage and revealing its distinct role in organ physiology and pathophysiology. She has authored more than 200 primary papers and reviews in high profile journals. Dr. Merad is the recipient of the William B. Coley Award for Distinguished Research in Basic and Tumor Immunology. In 2020, she was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in recognition of her contributions to the field of immunology and in 2023, she was named President of the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS). Dr. Merad obtained her M.D. at the University of Algiers and completed her residency in hematology/oncology at the University of Paris VII. She holds a Master’s degree in biotechnology and a Ph.D. in immunology from Stanford University and University Paris VII.
About DEM BioPharma Inc.
DEM Bio is pioneering the next generation of immunotherapeutics that unleash the innate immune system to eliminate tumors by targeting ‘don’t eat me’ (DEM) and ‘eat me’ (EM) signals on cancer cells, macrophages and other myeloid effector cells. The company’s approach builds on the groundbreaking functional genomics research and discoveries in macrophage biology from its scientific co-founders: Drs. Jonathan Weissman and Kipp Weiskopf of the Whitehead Institute and Dr. Michael Bassik of Stanford University. The proprietary CHoMP™ platform (Co-culture with Human Myeloid Phagocytes) utilizes CRISPR-based functional genomic screens in human cancer cells and/or primary macrophages to discover and validate new DEM and EM signals that could profoundly induce and enhance cancer cell elimination through increased phagocytosis. For further information, see: https://dembiopharma.com/.
