Photo of Mary Weitzel

Yaso Therapeutics Adds Two Senior Executives to Advisory Group

Yaso Therapeutics Inc. (Frisco, TX) today announced the addition of two senior executive to its Advisory Board, to help us expand beyond our historical NIH funding and accelerate growth. 

 

Ms. Sue Thirlwall is a graduate of Harvard Business School, has been an executive with several companies, including consumer-oriented medical devices, has served in various key leadership roles at HBS including currently on the HBS Women’s Student Association Women’s Alumnae Board and has been heavily involved with the Harvard Business School Alumni Association for over twenty years. Sue has served as a serial strategic consultant, board member, CEO and entrepreneur, creating and building purpose-driven consumer lifestyle brands with strengths in new frontiers, especially in health and wellness. Mr. Bryan Howard was formerly President of Planned Parenthood, Arizona, and has thirty-five years with that organization developing solutions to prevent unplanned pregnancy, at a state and national level.

 

“Unplanned pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections are global public health challenges,” said Yaso CEO Mary Weitzel. “Yaso has a non-hormonal on- demand product that has demonstrated safety and efficacy in vitro, and is now moving into human clinical trials. Ms. Weitzel added, “The potential to improve women’s lives on a global level, are incredibly exciting.” 

 

Mr. Howard noted, “There is a demand for non-hormonal solutions that are convenient to obtain. Approximately thirty-percent of women cannot take “the Pill” because of side effects. This is a perfect time to introduce Yaso; a company at an inflection point that is poised to become a significant contributor to global reproductive health.” 

 

Ms. Thirlwall said, “It’s a pleasure to join Yaso in a formal capacity. I have known Ms. Weitzel for over twenty years, and have watched Yaso develop its solid track record of scientific evidence, funded by the National Institutes of Health. I am looking forward to increasing awareness of the investment potential within my network.” 

 

Yaso’s vaginal gel is based on polyphenylene carboxymethylene (PPCM), a small polymer produced from mandelic acid, that shows broad activity against multiple viruses, and some bacteria. It has been shown safe in 28-day GLP toxicology studies, is non-mutagenic, and also inhibits HIV, HSV, papilloma virus, and Ebola virus, as well as Type A flu and SARS-CoV-2.  Its mechanism of action prevents the attachment and fusion of viruses, and prevents spermatozoa from fertilizing ova by dissolving the acrosomal coat. PPCM is in IND-enabling studies with target date submission of an IND in Q4 2021. 

 

Yaso Therapeutics, Inc. has been supported by the NIH – National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) under award numbers R41AI069695, R44AI082256, and R44HD092206. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.