University of Utah Health Press Release: BioEnergenix Metabolic Syndrome Spinoff
source confidence: Low status: Useful updated 2026-06-19
Summary
A July 2014 University of Utah Health press release describes BioEnergenix as a University of Utah spinoff company co-founded in 2009 by biochemistry professor Jared Rutter. The release links the company to preclinical work on PASK (PAS kinase) inhibition as a potential metabolic-syndrome therapeutic strategy, using a drug candidate developed by BioEnergenix in rodent studies published in Cell Reports.
Useful Claims
- BioEnergenix is described as a University of Utah spinoff company co-founded in 2009 by Jared Rutter, Ph.D.
- Allen Nickols is named as affiliated with BioEnergenix in rodent research described in the release.
- The company was developing a drug candidate intended to block PASK from modifying SREBP-1c, reducing hepatic fatty-acid and triglyceride production in mouse and rat models.
- In those preclinical models, insulin resistance and diabetes were partially reversed in diabetes-prone animals.
- Rutter stated hope to begin human clinical trials of a drug "in the next couple of years" as of the 2014 release date.
- The release frames the work as a public/private partnership between university researchers and the spinoff company.
Verbatim
"University of Utah researchers have discovered that an enzyme involved in intracellular signaling plays a crucial role in developing metabolic syndrome, a finding that has a U of U spinoff company developing a drug to potentially treat the condition." — Press release, opening paragraph
"Using a drug candidate being developed by the University of Utah spinoff company BioEnergenix, the researchers prevented PASK from modifying SREBP-1c. This, in turn, prevented SREBP-1c from increasing the production of enzymes that make fat, resulting in a drop in the levels of fatty acids and triglycerides in mouse and rat livers. Insulin resistance and diabetes were also partially reversed in diabetes-prone animals." — Press release, body
"The researchers, led by Jared Rutter, Ph.D. , professor of biochemistry , hope to begin human clinical trials of a drug in the next couple of years." — Press release, opening paragraph
"This study is a prime example of a public/private partnership to advance research and health care, a model becoming more common in medical and other scientific research." — Press release, closing paragraph
Reliability Notes
This is an institutional press release tied to a specific 2014 publication — useful for spinoff provenance and the PASK-inhibition thesis, but not for current company status, pipeline stage, headquarters, funding, or clinical progress. No official company website has been confirmed. Third-party directories disagree on headquarters and later-stage development; those claims should not be treated as verified without primary filings or company disclosures. Evidence gap: nothing reviewed confirms BioEnergenix is still actively operating or advancing the same candidate as of 2026-06-19.