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PROFESSOR SIMON BENITA
The Genomeweb article
Aurum Ventures Funds Development of Yissum Delivery Tech for
Controlled-Release Oral Rxs said
Yissum, the technology-transfer arm of the Hebrew University of
Jerusalem, and Aurum Ventures plan to co-develop and commercialize a
controlled-release drug-delivery platform for oral administration,
Yissum said this week.
Simon Benita, a professor at the Hebrew University's School of Pharmacy,
developed the delivery technology at the center of the deal to increase
the bioavailability of lipophilic drugs, which are poorly soluble in
water and thus have limited bioavailability and clinical efficacy.
In addition, Yissum said, when administered orally around a quarter of
all lipophilic drugs cannot be absorbed by the body because they
activate an intestinal pump barrier and are metabolized in the
intestines and liver.
Benita's drug-delivery system, which is based on proprietary
nanotechnology, is designed to enable oral formulations to bypass
intestinal and liver metabolic filters, thereby increasing their
bioavailability, Yissum said.
Simon Benita, Ph.D. is Professor at The Hebrew University of
Jerusalem,
where he received his Ph.D. in Pharmacy in 1980. He has also served as
an Invited Professor at the University of Paris-Sud and at the
University of Angers-France.
Simon's research is focused on
polymeric nano-
and microparticulate and lipid-based drug delivery systems aimed at
improving oral and ocular bioavailability and the strategy of covalently
linking monoclonal antibodies to colloidal carriers for drug
targeting.
He has published
130 research articles and 17 chapters, edited 3 books and been issued 15
patents. He has served as a member of the Board of
Pharmaceutical Sciences of the International Pharmacy Federation and the
Controlled Release Society and Governor of The International
Microencapsulation Society. He is currently a member of the Editorial
Boards of
Pharmaceutical Development and Technology,
Journal of Microencapsulation,
S.T.P. Pharma Sciences,
European Journal of Pharmaceutics & Biopharmaceutics,
and AAPS
PharmSciTech.
Simon edited
Microencapsulation: Methods and Industrial Applications, Second
Edition
(Drugs and the Pharmaceutical Sciences) and
Submicron Emulsions in Drug Targeting and Delivery, and
coedited
Emulsions and Nanosuspensions for the Formulation of Poorly Soluble
Drugs. His patents include
Oil-in-water emulsions of positively charged particles,
Medicinal emulsions,
Method and composition for dry eye treatment,
Preparation of biodegradable microcapsules based on serum albumin,
and
NMDA-blocking pharmaceutical compositions.
Simon was
recipient of The Hebrew University Kaye Innovation Award in 2000 and
again in 2005. He is an American Association of Pharmaceutical
Scientists Fellow. Novagali, a company founded by Simon, was chosen
to receive an achievement award in 2004 for its contributions to
successful economic exchanges between France and Israel.
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