Saillant Therapeutics
An innovative biotechnology start-up that develops promising small molecule-based therapies.
About Us
Saillant’s Recent History
Saillant Therapeutics B.V. is established in 2018 by Dr. Hamid el Azzouzi and Dr. Ad van Gorp. The team leverages its expertise in preclinical drug development to further validate and develop the promising therapeutic strategy of the ST-01 platform against acute ischemic stroke, heart failure (HF) and Alzheimer’s disease.
Saillant Therapeutics has a product pipeline covering novel compounds of which three therapeutic leads were selected. To date, seed financing has enabled the preclinical development and validation of the ST-01 analogs. It is the ambition of Saillant to advance its ST-01 platform also towards a variety of applications, resulting in at least one lead drug candidate reaching the clinic before the end of 2025.
Experts in the field
Meet Our Team
Dr. Hamid el Azzouzi
CSO
El Azzouzi obtained an MSc in biology from the Utrecht University and did his PhD in Cardiac Physiology at the Hubrecht Institute in Utrecht under the supervision of Prof. H. Clevers. This research focused on PPAR mediated regulation of metabolism in the failing heart by microRNAs. During his postdoctoral researche at the cardiology department of Maastricht University, he set up heart failure strategies in pre-clinical animal models, publishing his work in Cell Metabolism. As an assistant professor at the department of cardiology in the university medical center Utrecht (UMCU) he focused on strategies to enhance cardiac regeneration after cardiac injury by creating a new surgical approach to unload the failing murine heart and used this model to study the regenerative potential of the heart. Next to this, he started a new research niche to study the role of single nucleotide RNA modifications in heart failure. This has generated exciting and new insights on how subtle single nucleotide modifications of RNA cause severe cardiac dysfunction. In 2018, he started Saillant Therapeutics BV focusing on therapies for endogenous regeneration in heart failure and neurodegenerative diseases.
Dr. Ad van Gorp
Non Executive Director and Chairman
Van Gorp obtained an MSc in biology from the Utrecht University and did his PhD in Cardiac Physiology and Pharmacology at the University of Maastricht. He fullfilled 2 postdoc positions at the Univeristy of Leuven and University of Amsterdam. He worked at Janssen Pharmaceutica, Unilever, Danone and Kiadis in senior scientist positions. In 2005 he founded Lead Pharma and was CEO for 12 years. In 2015 Lead Pharma signed a large license deal with Sanofi on small molecule inhibitors of RORyt. The RORyt program is in clinical development. In 2018 he founded Cytura Therapeutics BV and Saillant Therapeutics BV. Van Gorp has extended experience in target discovery and development, strategic development and business development. He has gained extensive experience in strategic and operational hands-on management and leadership positions.
Ready to Make a Change?
By our full preclinical package, we will work together with you throughout the process until the commercialization of your drug candidate.