Scientific Co-Founders

John M. Essigmann, Ph.D.

Dr. Essigmann received his Ph.D. and did his postdoctoral research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dr. Essigmann is Professor of Toxicology and Chemistry at MIT. He has served as chairman of the Gordon Conference on Mutagenesis and his research is supported by an Outstanding Investigator Grant from the NIH. Dr. Essigmann has authored or coauthored numerous publications on DNA damaging agents and DNA repair.

Lawrence A. Loeb, M.D., Ph.D.

Dr. Loeb received his M.D. from New York University and his Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley. He is professor in the Department of Pathology, Director of the Gottstein Cancer Research Laboratory and Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Washington. In addition, Dr. Loeb is the Director of the Medical Scientist Training Program (M.D./Ph.D.) at the University of Washington. He was past president of the American Association for Cancer Research, the Environmental Mutagen Society and was the recipient of an Outstanding Investigator Grant from NIH. Dr. Loeb has authored or co-authored 285 publications, including publications on HIV RT.

James I. Mullins, Ph.D.

Dr. Mullins has been actively involved in the study of lentiviruses since 1980 and is a world authority in the study of HIV evolution during the course of infection. Dr. Mullins discovered the successful vaccine to protect against the feline leukemia retrovirus FeLV. His lab developed the heteroduplex mobility assay (HMA) that has been used worldwide to track the molecular epidemiology of HIV. Dr. Mullins is a recipient of Massachusetts Governor's Recognition Award for Outstanding Contributions to AIDS Research and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology. He is the director of the Genomics core of the University of Washington-Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center for AIDS Research (CFAR) and is director and principle investigator for the Seattle Primary Infection Program (SEAPiP). He obtained his Ph.D. in cell biology and biochemistry from the University of Minnesota. Research in Dr. Mullins' laboratory assists the fight against AIDS by seeking insight into the development of the disease in order to refine therapies and create effective vaccines. By relating the use of the techniques of molecular, computational and in vitro virus biology to in vivo analyses of biological activity conducted by collaborating laboratories, his lab has focused on events relevant to the HIV-human host relationship, disease induction and progression. Specifically, the lab is defining characteristics of HIV genomic variants associated with tissue, fluid and cell type compartmentalization, and linking these to studies of virus transmission and the kinetics and manifestations of disease. Links between cellular and humoral immune responses and HIV genetic variation and variant proliferation within infected individuals are being investigated. His lab is also investigating improved methods to generate of effective AIDS vaccine antigens.

Clinical and Scientific Advisors

Robert Murphy, M.D.* (Northwestern University)

Daniel Kuritzkes, M.D. (Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Harvard University)

Charles Hicks, M.D. (Duke University)

Joe Eron, M.D. (University of North Carolina)

Donald Bergstrom, Ph.D.(Purdue University)

Andrew Zolopa, M.D. (Stanford University)

Victor DeGruttola, Ph.D. (Harvard University)

Roy (Trip) Gulick, M.D. (Cornell University)

*Consulting chief medical director for Koronis.