Our Story

Reliant Glycosciences, LLC was founded in 2015 as a spin-out company from the University of Alabama at Birmingham based on technology developed in the laboratory of Dr. Jan Novak in the Department of Microbiology. Dr. Novak's research group discovered autoantibodies in patients with IgAN specific for aberrantly glycosylated IgA1, galactose-deficient in some of the hinge-region O-glycans. These autoantibodies drive formation of pathogenic immune complexes some of which deposit in the kidneys to induce tissue injury. Serum levels of these autoantibodies predict disease progression. These discoveries led to the development of biomarker assays for IgA nephropathy that have the potential to diagnose and monitor the disease. In partnership with the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Reliant Glycosciences licensed this technology to develop the assays for commercial use.

Meet the Team

Matthew B. Renfrow, PhD

FOUNDER
renfrow@reliantglycosciences.com

Dr. Renfrow is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He received his PhD degree from the University of Georgia, Augusta, Georgia. He is an Analytical Biochemist with expertise in the analysis of protein glycosylation. He has 15 years of experience in the development of analytical methods for glycoproteins. Dr. Renfrow is a recognized leader in the analysis of clustered O-glycosylation, specifically the multiple variants of IgA1 as related to IgAN.

William J. Placzek, PhD

FOUNDER
placzek@reliantglycosciences.com

Dr. Placzek is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He received his PhD degree from The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, California and completed postdoctoral training at the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute in La Jolla, California. Dr. Placzek has 14 years of experience in assay development and structure-based drug discovery. His research is focused on novel therapeutic target validation and has identified first-in-class inhibitors for three of these targets.

Dana V. Rizk, MD

FOUNDER
rizk@reliantglycosciences.com

Dr. Rizk is a Professor of Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in the Division of Nephrology. She received her MD degree from the American University of Beirut and completed her Internal Medicine Residency and Nephrology Fellowship at Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia. Dr. Rizk has more than 20 years of experience in the care of kidney patients. Her research interest and expertise are in the treatment of glomerular diseases, in particular IgAN.

Bruce A. Julian, MD

FOUNDER

Dr. Julian is a Professor Emeritus in the Division of Nephrology in the Department of Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham He received his MD degree from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. He completed his Internal Medicine Residency and Nephrology Fellowship at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky. He has been active in the field of research on IgAN for 46 years and is a recognized leader in the clinical manifestations and genetics of the disease.

Jan Novak, PhD

FOUNDER

Dr. Novak is a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Microbiology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He received his MSc in Biology from the Charles University in Prague and Ph.D. from the Institute of Microbiology of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague. He is one of the world’s leading experts in the pathogenesis of IgAN. Dr. Novak has 29 years of experience in IgAN research. His research group discovered the presence of autoantibodies involved in the pathogenesis of the disease. This discovery is the basis for the assays being developed by Reliant Glycosciences.

Tatum Moss, MBA

COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER
street@reliantglycosciences.com

Tatum Moss serves as the Lead Communications Manager at Reliant Glycosciences, where she oversees internal and external communications, project management, and business operations. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Marketing from the University of Alabama and an MBA from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. With extensive experience in business administration and communications. She plays a key role in aligning Reliant’s strategic goals with its day-to-day operations.

Janusz Tucholski, PhD

LEAD ASSAY SPECIALIST

Dr. Tucholski is the Lead Assay Specialist at Reliant Glycosciences. He received his PhD from the University of Gdańsk, Gdańsk, Poland in Biochemistry and completed postdoctoral fellowships in Cell Biology and Neurobiology. He then spent 15 years working in assay development.

Tomasz Szul, PhD

ASSAY DEVELOPMENT SCIENTIST

Dr. Szul received his Ph.D. in Cell Biology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham where he also completed his postdoctoral training in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine. He has over 20 years of experience in bench research, teaching, and solving/troubleshooting complex scientific problems.