Partnerships
FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY - FREDERICH LABORATORY
The Frederich Laboratory at FSU led by James H. Frederich is a chemistry lab with deep knowledge in building and testing novel small molecules. The Frederich lab has a focus on developing new strategies and tactics to build bespoke, architecturally-complex molecular therapeutics, leveraging significant expertise in synthetic chemistry and biophysics.
Lento Bio’s collaboration with Florida State University has focused on lead optimization and the design of our asset for reducing lens stiffness and treating presbyopia. The collaboration also focuses on synthesizing de novo compounds with strong effects against important molecular damage modalities in aging, with the goal of further expanding Lento Bio’s pipeline.
James Frederich, PhD
Dr. James Frederich is a medicinal chemist and professor at FSU who leads Lento Bio’s collaboration/novel compound design and research.
Sheila Duong
Sheila is a synthetic chemist and PhD candidate in Dr. Frederich’s lab. She works on novel compound design and synthesis for Lento Bio.
ICHOR LIFE SCIENCES
Ichor aims to help people live longer, healthier lives by developing therapies with the potential to treat age-related diseases. It is the first and oldest longevity-focused venture studio, as well as home to the oldest industry PhD program for drug discovery for longevity. By bringing together its expertise in drug development and as a CRO within its venture portfolio, Ichor is developing promising treatments that have the potential to transform how we age and address unmet needs in the process.
Lento Bio was founded as an independent company under the Ichor umbrella. Lento operates out of Ichor’s space in Syracuse, utilizing Ichor’s vast array of scientific instruments and resources, and received pre-seed funding from the company as well. Ichor leadership serve as advisors to Lento Bio and Dr. Kelsey Moody serves on our Board of Directors. Additionally, a significant portion of Lento Bio’s scientific program is done through Ichor’s CRO, allowing for consistent communication and long-term project focus from dedicated scientists. We at Lento Bio are strategically aligned with Ichor in our goal to treat aging diseases at the level of the underlying damage, as well as the approach of de-risking therapeutics with broader longevity applications by targeting ocular indications.
Christopher Schillo
Chris Schillo is Director of Ophthalmology at Ichor Life Sciences, leading the team of ocular researchers and scientists there with over a decade of experience conducting experiments in ophthalmic in vivo models. Chris is Study Director on Lento Bio’s in vivo projects, helping to design, manage and conduct experiments as part of Lento’s evolving presbyopia scientific program.
Andy Sargrad
Andy is a Research Associate at Ichor Life Sciences and has experience with a range of animal models for ocular disease. He is Program Project Manager for Lento Bio’s in vivo research and performs/oversees the technical procedures and data collection.
Natalie Jay, PhD
Natalie is a scientist at Ichor Life Sciences with a PhD from University of Buffalo and a focus on protein structure and function. She is study director for Lento’s biophysics projects which focus on building mechanistic understanding of therapeutic effects on protein crosslinks and age-induced damage.
Nichole Fish
Nichole is Operations Support Specialist at Ichor Life Sciences. She supports Lento’s accounting and business operations and provides administrative support.