On May 11, 2018 Paul Changelian, Ph.D., Vice President, Biology, Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACRS), reported that it will speak at the 2018 American Hair Research Summit on "Preclinical to Clinical Translation of JAK Kinase Inhibitors" on May 15 (Press release, Aclaris Therapeutics, MAY 11, 2018, View Source [SID1234526536]). The meeting is organized by the American Hair Research Society (AHRS) and will take place May 14-16 in Orlando, Florida.
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Dr. Changelian will review the history of drug discovery targeting Janus kinase (JAK) enzymes. JAK inhibitors initially were conceived as drugs to reduce organ transplant rejection but gradually were found to have utility in autoimmune diseases and oncology. Harnessing the benefits of JAK inhibition for dermatological conditions will require minimizing the potential for over suppression of the immune system and subsequent infections, through strategies such as identifying molecules highly selective for JAK1 and JAK3 inhibition or developing topical formulations with high skin permeability while minimizing systemic absorption. Current efforts to expand the range of diseases that could be targeted with JAK inhibitors will be discussed with emphasis on hair disorders, including alopecia areata and androgenetic alopecia.
Dr. Changelian is known for his key role in the discovery and development of tofacitinib, a pan-JAK inhibitor, while working as a scientist at Pfizer. In 1993, he first heard about the National Institutes of Health’s discovery of an enzyme in the Janus family of kinases involving the immune function. Seven years after initiating the discovery program, Dr. Changelian and the Pfizer immunology team selected tofacitinib for clinical development. Tofacitinib became the first JAK inhibitor approved by the FDA for an autoimmune disease. Dr. Changelian joined Aclaris in 2017 when Aclaris acquired Confluence Life Sciences, Inc., a company founded by former Pfizer scientists.