Introducing Biorasi’s Center of Excellence: Neurology and Regenerative Medicine

Advances in stroke management, the first cannabinoid-derived drug approved, new therapeutics for progressive multiple sclerosis, early signs of successful treatment of diabetes and myocardial infarct via stem cell therapy…these are a few of the many neurology and regenerative medicine developments we’ve seen over the past year. As researchers delve deeper into genetics, biomarkers, and biologics, people have access to an expanding range of treatments for neurological and other disorders.

As our population ages—all baby boomers will reach 65 by 2030, putting one in every five U.S. residents at retirement age—we expect to see rapid growth in neurology drugs and devices.

Biorasi’s Neurology and Regenerative Medicine Center of Excellence has become a leader
in this evolving field. Our expert team, combined with Biorasi’s close relationship with sites worldwide and access to diverse and hard-to-find patient populations, allow us to guide neurology, pain, psychiatric, and cell therapy trials to success.

Over the next few months, we’ll cover topics that include the connection between the microbiome and psychiatric disorders, the latest in stem cell therapy treatments, and more. Our in-depth white papers will help you solve ongoing challenges, such as boosting patient recruitment and enrollment when studying complex neurological diseases. Case studies will show how we partnered with pharma companies to bring new drugs to market.

Here are the team members that make our Neurology Center of Excellence truly excellent:

Wayne Bowden, VP, Program Development

Wayne Bowden

An accomplished researcher and executive, Wayne has the scientific knowledge to understand the intricate details of clinical research. He also has the business savvy to shepherd those trials to success.

Wayne consults with pharmaceutical companies to optimize clinical trials for innovative new drugs, biologics, and biosimlars in multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s Disease, Crohn’s Disease, diabetes, arthritis, and other therapeutic areas. He holds a B.S. in neurobiology and neurosciences from The University of Texas at Austin and an MBA in healthcare management from Florida International University.

Kurt Gehlsen, MD, PhD, VP, Chief Scientific Officer

Dr. Kurt Gehlsen

Dr. Gehlsen is an accomplished researcher, executive, and entrepreneur with hundreds of patents and peer-reviewed articles and multiple approved therapeutics to his name. He leads Biorasi’s Medical and Scientific Affairs department, as well as clinical development optimization for sponsors.

Dr. Gehlsen arrived to Biorasi by way of Research Corporation Technologies (RCT), a technology investment and management company, where he also served as vice president and CSO. He has served on Biorasi’s Board of Directors since its inception. He has also worked on the sponsor side, which gives him first-hand knowledge of pharma and biopharma’s immense challenges. His experience will help us stay on the cutting edge of clinical development.

Ruslan Gorsky, Program Development Associate

Ruslan Gorsky

Ruslan supports our Neurology and Regenerative Medicine Center of Excellence by helping develop our partners’ research programs. As a former Marine infantryman, Ruslan’s on-the-ground experience has fueled his intrinsic interest in psychiatric disorders such as PTSD that affect the veteran community. Ruslan holds a degree in psychology from Suffolk University. He speaks three languages and has working knowledge in computer science, stem cell therapy, and neurology, making him an asset to our global practice.

Sergey Pavlenko, MD, Project Director

Dr. Sergey Pavlenko

As a Clinical Research Professional, Dr. Pavlenko has over 12 years of experience in the clinical research industry, having served a wide range of roles, including CRA, Clinical Team Manager, Project Manager, Medical Monitor, and currently as Project Director. His experience extends throughout working on multinational Phase I-IV clinical trials. While at Biorasi, Dr. Pavlenko has successfully executed two Rescue studies in Multiple Sclerosis and Psoriasis.

Dr. Pavlenko’s therapeutic experience in clinical trials includes Neurology, Psychiatry, Cardiology, Endocrinology, Dermatology, Nephrology, Gynecology, Oncology, and Rheumatology. In 2005, he received his MD in from Novosibirsk State Medical University. Dr. Pavlenko also holds a Certificate of Neurologist, along with an engineering diploma in biotechnical and medical devices and systems.

Jimmy El Hokayem, PhD, Head, Neurology and Regenerative Medicine Center of Excellence

Dr. El Hokayem

As head of our Neurology and Regenerative Medicine Center of Excellence, Dr. El Hokayem oversees all neurology and regenerative medicine-related projects. On any given day, you’ll find him meeting with scientists, physicians and KOLs, conducting market research, meeting with pharma stakeholders, attending or speaking at conferences, or preparing bid defenses, proposals, presentations, and other documents crucial to our business.

Dr. El Hokayem received his Ph.D. from University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. He went on to conduct postdoctoral work at the University’s Hussman Institute for Human Genomics.

During his 17-year academic career, Dr El Hokayem published about 20 papers and received multiple awards from national and international foundations and entities. His expertise spanned from basic science to translational and clinical research.

Published research includes studies on epigenetics and gene expression in neurological and neuro-oncological disorders, novel treatments for Status Epilepticus caused by a hypoxic insult at birth, therapeutics and biomarker development for Autism Spectrum Disorder and Alzheimer’s Disease using human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells, brain organoids model, transcriptomics, genomics and proteomics technologies.

We look forward to an exciting year of breakthrough medical and technological developments. We’ll share what we know to help you stay on top of industry trends and to keep your clinical trials moving forward.

Got any questions about our neurology expertise? Get in touch.