David R. Elmaleh, Ph.D., is a renowned molecular imaging expert and inventor of numerous molecular imaging agents, including three drugs that are in use in late stage clinical trials, including the radiopharmaceutical preparation of 2FDG, which has been issued in millions of PET imaging procedures; beta-methyl modified fatty acid (BMIPP), a commercially successful cardiac SPECT agent; and Altropane, which has completed phase III clinical trials. An inventor on over 50 issued and pending patents, he notably holds a patent on the use of 18F-FDG PET for imaging atherosclerosis, for tracking inflammation within plaques, and for monitoring responses to drug therapy. He has contributed to over 130 publications and book chapters during his longstanding career.
Currently, Dr. Elmaleh serves as the chief executive officer and chairman of AZTherapies Inc., a developer of Alzheimer’s disease drugs. In previous years, he served as the scientific founder of Imaging Biopharmaceuticals, now known as Molecular Insight Pharmaceuticals Inc., which researched and developed targeted therapeutic and imaging radiopharmaceuticals for cancer. He was also the scientific founder of Mersana Therapeutics, which developed novel cancer therapeutics. Demonstrating versatility in his profession, he also co-founded FluoroPharma and PureTech Health, the latter of which he serves as senior advisor. Delving into education, he was an associate professor at Harvard Medical School and the director of contrast media chemistry at Massachusetts General Hospital.
In light of his outstanding contributions to the medical industry, Dr. Elmaleh was named One of the Biotechnology Industry’s Top Thirteen Serial Entrepreneurs by Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News. Inducted into Cambridge Who’s Who in 2014, his work was also nominated in One of the 25 Most Valuable Inventions of the Brain of the Decade. Highlighted by The Wall Street Journal on October 16, 2018, he was presented with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018.
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