Tazeen Ahmad
BofA Securities, Research Division

I'm Tazeen Ahmad. I'm one of the senior biotech analysts here at the bank. It's my pleasure to have our next presenting company, Rhythm Pharmaceuticals. Sitting up here on stage with me is David Meeker, who is, of course, President and CEO. Welcome.

David Meeker
Chairman, President & CEO

Thank you.

Tazeen Ahmad
BofA Securities, Research Division

So for the few people who may not know about the platform of the company, David, maybe you can give us a quick overview, and then we can go into some specifics.

David Meeker
Chairman, President & CEO

Sure. So Rhythm is a company that was really founded around the melanocortin-4 pathway biology. The drug that's approved for multiple indications is an analogue of the natural hormone that signals through this melanocortin-4 receptor. And what that biology does is very simply is when we eat a meal, our gut hormone signal to the pancreas and to the adipocyte, the adipocyte releases leptin and it goes to the brain, signals down through this part of the hypothalamus, this POMC neuron, which then causes a hormone alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone to be released.

And when that interacts with the receptor, it tells the body you're full and there's food on board. So you can increase your metabolic rate. So if you have impaired signaling through that pathway, you might eat a meal or you eat a meal. The body doesn't get the signal, you're full, so you keep eating. And then perversely, the body thinks you're starving, it's not getting the signals food on board, and so it keeps the metabolic rate low.