Atmo Biosciences has appointed a Medical Advisory Board (MAB), comprising world-renowned gastroenterologists.
The Atmo MAB met for the first time recently in conjunction with the Digestive Disease Week conference, held in San Diego. The MAB will provide valuable insight into opportunities for the company to address unmet clinical needs in gastroenterology and expand the clinical utility of the unique Atmo technology platform. The MAB is also contributing crucial clinical input to the design of Atmo’s upcoming pivotal clinical trial aimed at securing an initial regulatory clearance in the US for an indication of Motility and Transit Time through a submission to the FDA.
The Atmo MAB consists of six gastroenterologists selected for their specialist expertise and interest in functional gut disorders and related conditions, many of which Atmo is targeting. The MAB members are highly regarded key opinion leaders in their respective fields and have extensive experience with wireless motility capsule technology.
Professor Peter Gibson, MB, BS(Hons), MD, FRACP
Chairing the MAB is Professor Peter Gibson, Professor of Gastroenterology at the Central Clinical School, Monash University, and Adjunct Professor at RMIT University. Professor Gibson was formerly Professor-Director of Gastroenterology at Alfred Health and, prior to that, Professor of Medicine and the founding Head of the Eastern Health Clinical School, Melbourne. Professor Gibson is a distinguished figure in gastroenterology internationally and has a long history with Atmo, having contributed to the company’s clinical program from inception. Professor Gibson is Past-President of the Gastroenterological Society of Australia and was Founder and Chair of IBD Australia. He led the Monash team that developed the low FODMAP diet, now used extensively worldwide to control symptoms and influence outcomes in chronic conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Professor Gibson spent several years on the Council of the Asian-Pacific Gastroenterology Association and is a Board member of the Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Foundation.
He is currently an Associate Editor of Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics. He directs a program of translational research focusing largely in the areas of inflammatory bowel disease, coeliac disease and irritable bowel syndrome. He has published more than 500 peer-reviewed papers and was awarded the Distinguished Research Prize by the Gastroenterological Society of Australia in 2010, the Vice Chancellor’s Award in Research Impact (Economic and Social Impact) in 2016, and the Web of Science Highly Cited Researchers Award in 2020 and 2021.
Additionally, Atmo welcomes the following esteemed gastroenterologists to its MAB:
Professor Lin Chang, MD, AGAF – UCLA
Professor Lin Chang, MD is a Professor of Medicine and Vice-Chief of the Vatche and Tamar Manoukian Division of Digestive Diseases, Department of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. She serves as the Co-Director of the G. Oppenheimer Center for Neurobiology of Stress and Resilience at UCLA. She is also Program Director of the UCLA Gastroenterology Fellowship Program.
Professor Chang’s clinical expertise is in disorders of gut-brain interaction (also known as functional gastrointestinal disorders). Her research focuses on brain-gut interactions underlying IBS, specifically, the pathophysiology of IBS related to stress, early life adversity, sex differences, genetic and epigenetic factors, and gut microbiome and the treatment of IBS. She has recently served as the Clinical Research Councilor of the AGA Governing Board. She previously served as President of the American Neurogastroenterology and Motility Society (ANMS) and is a member of the Rome Foundation Board of Directors.
Professor William D. Chey, MD, AGAF, FACG, FACP, RFF – University of Michigan (U-M)
Professor Chey is the Timothy T. Nostrant Collegiate Professor of Gastroenterology, and Chief, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology in the School of Medicine at the University of Michigan where he also holds the roles of Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences, Director of the GI Physiology Laboratory, and Co-Director of the Michigan Bowel Control Program. Professor Chey is a member of the American College of Gastroenterology’s Board of Trustees and part of the executive leadership team; the Rome Foundation’s Board of Directors; Rome V criteria Editorial Board and serves as Vice President and a member of the Board of Directors of the International Foundation of GI Disorders.
Dr. Chey’s research interests focus on the diagnosis and treatment of disorders of gut brain interaction and H. pylori infection. He has mentored more than 70 students, residents, fellows, and junior faculty. Dr. Chey is a medical innovator and holds several patents. He is a former Co-Editor-in-Chief of the American Journal of Gastroenterology and has authored more than 400 manuscripts, reviews, chapters, and books including more than 10 national and international clinical practice guidelines.
Dr. Braden Kuo, MD, MSc – Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) / Harvard Medical School
Dr. Braden Kuo, MD, MSc is a neurogastroenterologist and the director of the Center for Neurointestinal Health at Mass General. He is also an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Kuo specializes in disorders of gastrointestinal motility and neurogastroenterology and his clinical practice is devoted to treating patients with gastrointestinal motility disorders and disorders of brain-gut interaction.
Dr. Kuo’s research interests include clinical and physiologic research in neurogastroenterology and motility with particular interest in chronic nausea, gastroparesis, and the physiologic characterization of GI motility. His research has been published in medical journals across the spectrum of GI, and he directs a comprehensive clinical and research effort that includes experts in pediatric and adult neurogastroenterology, outpatient clinics, state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment, and an internationally recognized research laboratory that studies brain imaging in health and disease. Dr. Kuo received his medical degree from Jefferson Medical College and completed his residency at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center before coming to MGH for a gastroenterology fellowship. He also completed formal training in clinical research culminating in a Master of Science from the Harvard School of Public Health and subspecialty training in neurogastroenterology and motility at Mayo Clinic before joining the faculty.
Professor Anthony Lembo, MD – Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center / Harvard Medical School
Professor Anthony Lembo, MD, is Director of Clinical Research and Education and Co-Director of the GI Motility Laboratory at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA.
Professor Lembo earned his medical degree from Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston and completed his residency in medicine, as well as fellowships in gastroenterology and gastrointestinal motility and IBS, at the UCLA Medical Center. Professor Lembo’s research interests focus on the burden of and treatment options for IBS, SIBO, and chronic constipation, and he also studies the placebo response. He has published widely on these topics. He is also an Associate Editor of Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology. Professor Lembo has been appointed to numerous national and international leadership positions throughout his tenure.
Professor Satish Rao, MD, PhD – Augusta University
Professor Rao is the J Harold Harrison MD, Distinguished University Chair in Gastroenterology & Professor of Medicine, Founding Director of the Digestive Health Center, Director of the Digestive Health Clinical Research Center, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA.
Professor Rao is internationally renowned for his specialist expertise in Neurogastroenterology/Motility (NGM) and has pioneered new techniques and novel treatments for esophageal, gastric, colonic and anorectal function. He has established an international center of excellence and training in NGM that attracts trainees and patients from all over USA and 35 countries globally and is a past President of the American Neurogastroenterology & Motility Society. Professor Rao has published over 550 research papers, 10 books, holds 5 patents, has 26,300 citations and has mentored 100 research Fellows. Professor Rao is currently funded with NIH R01 and U01 and other grants. Professor Rao has been awarded the AGA Distinguished Clinician Award, the AGA Distinguished Educator Award, the AGA Masters Award for Clinical Research as well as University of Iowa Regents Award for Faculty Excellence, Augusta University Distinguished Research Award, Medical College of Georgia Mentoring Excellence Award and the ACG Inaugural Distinguished Mentor and Educator Award.
Chair of the Atmo MAB, Professor Peter Gibson commented, “I am delighted to be involved with such an exceptional group of clinician researchers who are contributing to the development of the Atmo technology and its clinical application to provide insight into gut physiology. Clinical input is critical to ensure that the technology fulfills the unmet need for diagnostic tools, which will lead to more personalized approaches for treating gastrointestinal conditions, and the monitoring of progress and response to those therapies.”
Commenting on the MAB formation, Atmo’s Chief Executive Officer Malcolm Hebblewhite said, “The formation of a Medical Advisory Board is an important milestone for Atmo. We are excited and honoured to have such prominent gastroenterologists engaged and contributing to our mission of transforming the diagnosis and management of functional gut disorders and assisting researchers and clinicians to better understand microbiome function.”