uBiome Launches Research Partnership with University of Louisville Physicians to Investigate the Microbiome as a Predictor of Clinical Response to IBD Therapies

SAN FRANCISCO, Mar. 7, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- uBiome announced the launch of a research collaboration with Gastroenterology Fellow, Dr. Brandon Wuerth, MD, and Director of the University of Louisville Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center, Dr. Gerald Dryden, MD, PhD. The collaboration will investigate microbiota as a potential predictor of clinical response to therapies for Inflammatory Bowel Disease (ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease); specifically, the response to newer biologic agents such as Entyvio® or Stelara®.

"This study has the potential to inform a more personalized approach to IBD treatment and to improve outcomes," said Dr. Jessica Richman, co-founder and CEO of uBiome. "We are proud to support Dr. Wuerth and Dr. Dryden's mission to uncover the associations of the microbiome in clinical response to therapies for IBD."

If microbiota does in fact act as a predictor, microbiome testing could be performed prior to selecting a certain agent. Data collected from the study will include a clinical symptom score, C-reactive protein (CRP) as a response to inflammation, fecal calprotectin, endoscopy data, number of hospitalizations, and number of times placed on steroids, if applicable. The microbiomes of individuals who 'flare' and 'don't flare' will be compared both at the beginning of the study and after six months.

Dr. Wuerth, a member of uBiome's Advisory Board, completed his internal medicine residency at the Medical University of South Carolina and is currently a second-year Gastroenterology Fellow at the University of Louisville. A sufferer of IBD himself, he founded the popular website IBDwatch.org to broadcast news and research pertaining to IBD to both physicians and patients. Dr. Dryden is a Professor of Medicine and Director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Program at the University of Illinois. His clinical areas of expertise are hepatology, inflammatory bowel disease, and endoscopic device development.

About the research partnership, Dr. Wuerth said, "We are honored and excited to be working with uBiome, a true pioneer in the field of the gastrointestinal microbiome, to investigate whether or not the microbiome can predict clinical response to the newer treatment options for Inflammatory Bowel Disease. This could lead to improved patient outcomes and lower overall costs."

Through its Clinical Research Initiative, uBiome provides microbiome research support in study design, planning, sample collection and sequencing, and bioinformatic analysis to researchers. They strive to partner with researchers worldwide to advance clinical outcomes through microbiome science. Since its inception in 2012, uBiome has partnered with hundreds of academic centers and over 1,000 researchers worldwide to conduct important microbiome research.

About uBiome
Founded in 2012, uBiome is the leader in microbial genomics. The Company's mission is to advance the science of the microbiome and make it useful to people. uBiome combines its patented proprietary precision sequencing™ with machine learning and artificial intelligence to develop wellness products, clinical tests, and therapeutic targets. uBiome has filed for over 250 patents on its technology, which includes sample preparation, computational analysis, molecular techniques, as well as diagnostic and therapeutic applications.

uBiome's commercial products include SmartGut™, the world's first sequencing-based clinical microbiome test, which identifies microbes in the gut for patients with chronic gut conditions such as IBD, IBS, Crohn's Disease, and ulcerative colitis; SmartJane™, the first sequencing-based women's health screening test, which genotypes all 19 clinically relevant strains of HPV, identifies four common STDs, and surveys more than 20 vaginal microbes associated with bacterial vaginosis and other conditions; and Explorer™, a health and wellness product to understand the role that food and lifestyle can play in wellness.

uBiome's platform has been used by hundreds of thousands of consumers, patients, and doctors and more than 200 research institutions around the world, including the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC), US National Institutes of Health (NIH), Harvard University, Stanford University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), University of California, San Francisco, Oxford University, and the University of Sydney.

Since its launch, the company has received widespread recognition including CNN 10: Startups to Watch, the IVY Technology Award, CNN Future 30, and was named one of Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies in Healthcare in 2016 and in Data Science in 2018, as well as a Technology Pioneer from the World Economic Forum in 2018. For more information, visit http://www.uBiome.com.

SOURCE Ubiome

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