Jim Sahn

James Sahn is the Co-Founder of NuvoNuro, a UT Austin spinout, and Vice President of Drug Development at 4E Therapeutics. He received his Ph.D. from North Carolina State University (Daniel Comins) and conducted postdoctoral studies at The University of Texas (UT) at Austin (Stephen Martin). Sahn has 20 years of experience in synthetic-organic chemistry with a focus on the design and synthesis of bioactive small molecules with medicinal properties. His research interests lie broadly in the areas of medicinal chemistry, pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, and new treatment modalities for neurodegenerative- and neurological disorders. Toward this end, he has studied the transmembrane protein 97 (TMEM97) for its involvement in a wide range of neurological conditions. Sahn and collaborators have synthesized hundreds of TMEM97 modulators across multiple compound classes, leading to the discovery of pharmacological tools with neuroprotective- and analgesic properties. These efforts led to the cloning and identification of σ2R as transmembrane protein 97 (TMEM97), enabling previously unavailable biological investigations that have further enhanced the understanding of this potential drug target.