Leading force behind the John A. Moran Eye Center
SALT LAKE CITY, Nov. 20, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Jade Therapeutics, Inc., announced today the election of Randall Olson, MD, Chief Executive Officer and Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences of the John A. Moran Eye Center at the University of Utah School of Medicine, to a newly created position on the Company's Board of Directors.
Dr. Olson completed his undergraduate training and medical schooling at the University of Utah, his residency at UCLA in ophthalmology, and fellowships in cornea at the University of Florida in Gainesville and at the LSU Eye Center in New Orleans, where he joined the faculty in 1977 as Director of Corneal Services. The Division of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at theUniversity of Utah has undergone explosive growth since Dr. Olson was recruited in 1979 to spearhead its development. Known especially for its retinal physiology and basic genetics research, the Department today consists of fifty-seven faculty members and has become a leading, internationally recognized force in understanding the complications associated with cataract surgery and in novel treatments for macular degeneration.
Dr. Olson specializes in research dealing with intraocular lens complications, teleophthalmology, and corneal transplantation techniques. He was selected as one of the fifteen top experts in the field of cataract surgery in the United States in a peer survey conducted by Ophthalmology Times magazine, has appeared in the last four editions of Best Doctors in America, and has been in the last two Cataract and Refractive Surgery Today editions honoring the top 50 professional opinion leaders in the field of cataract and refractive surgery. He was selected as the Binkhorst award recipient in 2012 by the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, and has given many named lectures all over the country. In 2014, he was selected by the University of Utah for the Rosenblatt prize for excellence and to give the Kelman Lecture on Entrepreneurship in Clinical Research at the American Academy of Ophthalmology.
"Randy has been the leading force in building the Moran Eye Institute into the world-class ocular research and treatment institution that it is today," said Jade CEO Arthur Klausner. "His guidance and experience in both the medical and business development aspects of ophthalmology will be extremely beneficial to Jade as we continue the advancement of our novel, polymer-based products."
Said Dr. Olson: "Given that Jade co-founder Barbara Wirostko, MD, maintains a clinical appointment here at Moran, I'm particularly pleased to join the team at the Board level. Jade's technology platform allows a broad range of intriguing product possibilities, including ophthalmic therapeutics consisting of polymer alone or polymer combined with sustained-delivery drug payloads."
About Jade Therapeutics, Inc.
Jade Therapeutics develops locally administered, polymer-based products designed to treat poorly served ophthalmic indications. The Company's proprietary, cross-linked, bio-erodible hydrogel technology has demonstrated a variety of unique and beneficial characteristics, whether employed alone or as a sustained-release drug-delivery vehicle. This approach could enable improved therapeutic outcomes along with increased patient compliance to therapy, decreased frequency of administration and office visits, and avoidance of subsequent surgeries – ultimately resulting in better visual outcomes with enhanced quality of life. Importantly, Jade's products benefit from relatively short clinical/regulatory pathways, and the Company's use of approved and/or well-tested bioactive agents significantly decreases development risk.