MERIT Preclinical Services

Bench to Bedside

Serving Your Needs in Every Stage of Therapy & Device Development

With the acquisition of OSOD, MERIT now offers preclinical research services, enabling a seamless transition from preclinical to clinical phases of drug development. We have expertise in discovery, establishing proof of concept, accelerating drug/device development, and assessment of ocular pharmacology and toxicity. MERIT sets the standard for the delivery of ocular preclinical services and are committed to accelerating the identification and development of ophthalmic therapies and devices.

Our veterinary and physician ophthalmologists, pathologists, and vision scientists conduct research in a variety of species aimed at identifying the physiological, biochemical, and molecular mechanisms contributing to the onset and progression of age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, cataract, wound-healing, and diverse ocular diseases affecting all components of the visual system.

Industry Experience

OSOD’s expertise in vision science has been instrumental in advancing several ophthalmic therapies from preclinical research to market approval, including Lucentis, Eylea, Xiidra, Susvimo, and Durysta.

R&D Engine

Our EXCELSIOR Preclinical software allows preclinical data from different ocular imaging modalities to be hosted in a single cloud platform, providing a suite of advanced endpoint analysis tools to increase accuracy and efficiency. EXCELSIOR Preclinical is designed based on our extensive collaboration with biopharma companies.

Executive Team

Christopher J Murphy DVM, PhD, DACVOCEO at OSOD, A MERIT Company

Disciplines

  • Biomaterial Science & Engineering
  • Biomechanics
  • Clinical Comparative Ophthamology
  • Cornea/Anterior Segment
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Dr. Murphy is a founder, serves as CEO, and provides consulting in veterinary ophthalmology.

Dr. Murphy is a Board Certified Veterinary Ophthalmologist, and Professor of Comparative Ophthalmology in the Schools of Veterinary Medicine & Medicine, University of California-Davis. Dr. Murphy has advanced training and expertise in corneal diseases and surgery, comparative physiological optics, comparative ocular anatomy, as well as ocular diseases of laboratory and exotic animal species.

His laboratory has several active areas of research:

  • Modulation of cell behaviors by biophysical attributes of the extracellular matrix: With many collaborators, Dr. Murphy is determining how biophysical attributes (nanoscale topography and compliance) of the extracellular matrix modulate fundamental cell behaviors such as orientation, adhesion, migration differentiation and proliferation. These studies have relevance to improved design of biomaterials as well as increasing our understanding of the microenvironment of cells in health and disease.
  • Modulation of wound healing using engineering principals: A large interdisciplinary team is engaged in developing novel approaches to accelerate wound healing of the cornea and skin through funtionalzing wound beds rather than treating with standard soluble factors. The central concept is that improved wound healing outcomes can be achieved through "changing the wound" surface chemistry and biophysical attributes rather than treating the wound with soluble factors.
  • Comparative ocular functional morphology: Dr. Murphy studies how various animals have evolved unique optical adaptations for optimizing their visual performance under challenging environmental conditions.
  • Development of improved solutions for organ storage prior to transplantation: In collaboration with Professor Jon McAnulty, transplant surgeon at the School of Veterinary Medicine, Dr. Murphy has found that the addition of a unique combination of trophic factors can markedly extend the time that an organ can be stored and improve its performance once it is transplanted.

Standard services to industry provided by Dr. Murphy's laboratories include performance of in-vitro cytotoxicity assays using primary cultures from human ocular cell lines (cornea and trabecular meshwork) and conducting proof of principal studies using animal models.

T. Michael Nork, MD, MSChief Translational Medicine Officer at OSOD, A MERIT Company

Disciplines

  • Glaucoma
  • Imaging and Fundus Evaluation
  • Neuroprotection
  • Ocular Pathology
  • Ocular Physiology (Posterior Segment)
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Dr. Nork is a founder, serves as a member of the Executive Board, and provides consulting on many aspects of vision science.

Dr. Nork is an Associate Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. He is fellowship trained in ophthalmic pathology, and his clinical specialties include diseases, surgery of the retina and vitreous, and clinical electrophysiology.

His research model incorporates electrophysiologic and histopathologic techniques to assess the effects of glaucoma on the outer retina (the photoreceptors) and possible neuroprotective mechanisms. In collaboration with the University of Wisconsin Department of Ophthalmology Fundus Photograph Reading Center, Dr. Nork grades retina photographs and optical coherence tomographs for toxicologic studies. He also provides surgical expertise on vitrectomy, subretinal injections and retinal laser photocoagulation for animal models of choroidal neovascularization.

Andy Whitlock, PhDChief Scientific Officer at OSOD, A MERIT Company

Disciplines

  • Glaucoma
  • Preclinical Pharmacology & Efficacy
  • Preclinical Development
  • Drug Delivery
  • Neuroprotection
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With over two decades of unparalleled experience in ophthalmic research and a proven track record of success, Dr. Whitlock brings a wealth of expertise to OSOD. In his concurrent role as Chief Scientific Officer at SightStream Biotherapeutics (Formerly Kera Therapeutics), Dr. Whitlock played a pivotal role in establishing and overseeing multiple drug and retinal stem cell replacement therapy development programs. He spearheaded the medicinal chemistry program, driving the development of novel peptide analogues with improved potency, solubility, and ocular permeability.

Prior to role at SightStream, Dr. Whitlock was the VP of Preclinical R&D at Ora for nearly a decade. In this position helped guide countless early-stage ophthalmic programs towards the clinic. These programs ranged from anterior to posterior indications and spread across many treatment modalities including small molecules, biologics, gene therapies, and cell-based therapies. Dr. Whitlock's extensive background in molecular cell biology, animal pharmacology, and ophthalmic drug development positions him as a key asset to OSOD. His leadership experience includes serving as the Head of Preclinical Research & Product Development at Oculogenex and as the President and Principal Consultant at Ocular Discovery Services, LLC.

Gary LeatherberryCheif Operating Officer at OSOD, A MERIT Company

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Gary Leatherberry’s career spans more than 33 years in drug development. Early in his career, he worked in foundational roles such as dose formulation technician and repost coordinator before rising to positions like Toxicologist and Study Director. Over the past 20 years his focus has been dedicated entirely to ophthalmology. He currently serves as the Chief Operating Officer at OSOD where he helps manage day-to-day operations, build strategic partnerships, and facilitate seamless industry collaborations.

Charles O’Neill, PhD, DABTExecutive Director at OSOD, A MERIT Company

Disciplines

  • Regulatory Affairs
  • Regulatory Toxicology
  • Translational Pharmacology
  • Drug Development
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Dr. O'Neill serves as a member of the Executive Board and provides consulting on many aspects of vision science with a specific focus on drug development and nonclinical considerations for regulatory submissions. Dr. O’Neill has 30 years of biotechnology and pharmaceutical development experience. Currently, he is a Co-Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Board Chair at MCAL Therapeutics, Inc. that is developing a novel evaporative dry eye therapy. From 2004 to 2023 Dr. O’Neill was Vice President of nonclinical development at BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc., During that tenure there were 10 marketed approvals across multiple molecular platforms and indications. From 1995 to 2004, Dr. O’Neill progressed in both scientific and management roles at Genentech, Inc. Among other efforts, Dr. O'Neill led nonclinical development efforts regarding anti-angiogenic molecules including the targeted oncology monoclonal antibody AvastinTM, and the intra-vitreally delivered monoclonal antibody fragment LucentisTM, a treatment for the neovascular form of age-related macular degeneration.

Dr. O’Neill is a Co-Founder of SARcode BioSciences, Inc. that developed the inflammatory dry eye treatment XiidraTM. SARcode was acquired in 2014 by Shire Pharmaceutical Inc. XiidraTM is currently marketed by Bausch+Lomb. Dr. O'Neill is an Adjunct Professor in the Pharmacology and Toxicology Graduate Group at University of California, Davis. He has contributed to over 70 regulatory submissions worldwide and has coauthored over 80 peer-reviewed publications. Dr. O’Neill has been a Diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology since 1995.

Craig Crosson, PhDExecutive Director at OSOD, A MERIT Company

Disciplines

  • Glaucoma
  • Ocular Pharmacology
  • Ocular Physiology (Anterior Segment)
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Dr. Crosson serves as a member of the Executive Board and provides consulting on many aspects of vision science with a specific focus on pharmacology and animal models of elevated intraocular pressure, retinal degenerations and macular edema. Dr. Crosson is a Professor in the Department of Ophthalmology at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). He is also Director of the Ola B. Williams Glaucoma Therapeutic Development Center and Senior Associate Dean for Research at MUSC. His research interests include ischemia, neovascularization, and neuroprotection. Current research in his laboratory is targeting pharmacological treatment for elevated intraocular pressure, retinal degenerations and macular edema.

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