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Glucon Welcomes Mr. Ephraim Heller to the Company's Board of Directors
and Professor Adam Heller to Glucon's Scientific Advisory Board
Boulder, Colorado, October 20, 2004 --- Glucon (www.glucon.com) developer of a continuous, noninvasive, glucose monitoring technology for home and clinical use, announced today that Mr. Ephraim Heller is the newest member of Glucon's Board of Directors and Professor Adam Heller has joined the Company's scientific advisory board. Mr. Ephraim Heller is currently the CEO and Chairman of AngioScore. He is the founder of Therasense, Inc., established in 1996, to develop and globally market systems for diabetes management including FreeStyle™, a glucose monitoring device that requires a miniscule, painlessly obtained, blood sample to test blood sugar levels. Therasense, Inc. went public in 2001 at a $700 million valuation and was acquired by Abbott Laboratories in 2004 for $1.3 billion. Mr. Heller is also a co-founder of E. Heller & Company, which successfully developed photocatalyst technology. Mr. Heller holds an MBA from Yale University and a B.A. in Physics from Harvard University. "Though at present there is a long list of companies developing glucose monitoring systems, Glucon is the company to watch. The technology is brilliant and the team dedicated and astute. I believe Glucon will make a true and lasting contribution to the treatment of diabetes," said Mr. Heller. Professor Adam Heller is the father of Ephraim Heller as well as a series of notable scientific advancements. He is the creator of the lithium thionyl chloride battery, used worldwide in medical and communications systems. He is also a co-founder of Therasense, Inc., now Abbot Diabetes Care. The company's continuous glucose monitor is based on Professor Heller's work on electrical connection ("wiring") of redox centers of enzymes to electrodes through electron-conducting water swollen gels and has been submitted to the FDA for pre-marketing approval. Professor Heller is the author of 230 papers and 84 issued U.S. patents, 46 of which represent a major part of the technology of TheraSense. Professor Heller is also the recipient of many awards including: the Grahame Award of The Electrochemical Society, the Battery Research Award of the Electrochemical Society, the Chemistry of Materials Award of the American Chemical Society and the Reilly Award of the Electroanalytical Society. He earned his Ph.D. from Hebrew University in Jerusalem. "Glucon is developing a next generation of glucose monitoring technology, which is likely to set a new standard for the treatment of diabetes in the future," said Professor Heller. Glucon's flagship product, the Glucose Monitoring Watch (GMW), currently under development, reads glucose (sugar) levels directly from a blood vessel. This is achieved by combining photo acoustics with an advanced, proprietary, spectroscopy technology. The company's prototype device is currently undergoing extensive clinical trials. Preliminary results compare favorably with conventional invasive blood glucose tests. It is estimated that by the close of 2010, 24 million people in the U.S. and 220 million worldwide will suffer from diabetes. "Both Adam and Ephraim Heller are the perfect additions to the already prestigious Glucon Board of Directors and Scientific Advisory Board. They are both industry pioneers with an intricate understanding of how to develop viable and credible technologies for the treatment of diabetes. True visionaries, with a particularly keen business sense, it is an honor to have scientists and entrepreneurs of Adam and Ephraim Heller's caliber and experience to help guide Glucon into what we believe will be an exciting and successful future," said Glucon CEO Mr. Daniel Goldberger. About Glucon Glucon, developer of a continuous, non-invasive, blood glucose (sugar) monitoring technology for home and clinical use, was founded in 2000 by two Israeli scientists, Company President Ron Nagar and V.P. of R&D, Dr. Benny Pesach. Glucon's technology enables blood glucose measurements to be accessed directly from inside the blood vessels and offers an improved method both for specificity (identification) and sensitivity (detection of level changes) of the glucose measurement. The company's desktop prototype device, the Glucose Monitoring Watch (GMW) is currently undergoing extensive clinical trials. Seed financing was provided by InnoMed Ventures, the life science fund of Jerusalem Global Ventures. Additional investors include Giza Venture Capital, Infinity Venture Capital Fund, Ascend Technology Ventures, Reslo Life Science and a strategic Japanese partner. For additional information: Marjie Hadad, Media Liaison, Glucon, Marjie@glucon.com; +972-54-536-5220. Back to Press Releases |
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