Khondrion to present at MITO2i Inaugural Research Symposium on mitochondrial medicine and research

Khondrion to present at MITO2i Inaugural Research Symposium on mitochondrial medicine and research

NIJMEGEN, the Netherlands – 6 April 2021: Khondrion, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company discovering and developing therapies targeting mitochondrial disease, today announces that Dr. Herma Renkema, Chief Early Development Officer at Khondrion, will present at the MITO2i Inaugural Research Symposium, taking place virtually on 8-9 April 2021. 

This research symposium is organised by the Mitochondrial Innovation Initiative (MITO2i), a strategic initiative of the University of Toronto, Canada, that brings together a network of researchers, clinicians, patients and advocates, academic institutions, NGOs and industry partners to transform the understanding of the role of mitochondria in human health and disease. Together with its partners, the MITO2i aims to deliver supporting technologies, integrative platforms, and interdisciplinary knowledge that will lead to a paradigm shift in the way clinicians approach the diagnosis and treatment of disease and consider the potential role of mitochondrial dysfunction in multiple and prevalent medical conditions.

Dr. Herma Renkema, Chief Early Development Officer at Khondrion, said: "Mitochondrial diseases are complex disorders and, while it is encouraging that significant (clinical) progress has been made in recent years, we are not there yet in bringing treatments to patients suffering from these debilitating diseases. Furthering the scientific understanding of mitochondrial dysfunction and its role in disease are vital to transform diagnosis and drive forward the delivery of new therapies to the patients who so desperately need them.”

Dr. Renkema will provide a progress update on sonlicromanol, Khondrion’s lead asset, on Thursday 8 April 2021, in a session entitled “Path from research to clinical trials for lead compound sonlicromanol (KH176)”, which begins at 14.00 (EDT). 

Sonlicromanol is one of the most advanced potentially disease-modifying drug treatments for mitochondrial disease in development, currently being investigated in Phase IIb trials for MELAS (mitochondrial encephalomyopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episodes) spectrum disorders. The United States (US) Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted sonlicromanol a rare pediatric disease (RPD) designation for the treatment of patients with MELAS syndrome. It has been granted Orphan Drug Designations for MELAS syndrome, MIDD and Leigh disease in Europe, and for all inherited mitochondrial respiratory chain disorders in the US.

For more information on, or to register for, the MITO2i Inaugural Research Symposium, visit 2021 Symposium | Mitochondrial Innova (mito2i.ca).