Scientists from the Centre for Genomic Regulation and collaborators have developed a new approach to limiting the amount of collagen produced by hyperactive fibroblasts, which could lead to effective treatments for fibrotic diseases and scarring.
Evotec SE and Variant Bio Inc. have signed a collaboration agreement to identify treatments for diseases caused by fibrosis. The partnership leverages Variant Bio’s genomic discovery capabilities and VB-Inference platform as well as Evotec’s expertise in antifibrotic drug discovery.
A small molecule could provide a new therapeutic approach against organ fibrosis. Using genome-wide association (GWA) assays, a group of researchers from the Westmead Institute for Medical Research in Sydney identified Mer tyrosine kinase (MERTK) as a candidate to study fibrosis and showed that its inhibition with the experimental compound reduced this condition in mouse models’ liver, kidneys and lungs. “There were some studies on the role of MERTK in liver fibrosis, but its therapeutic potential for various organ fibrosis has not been explored before. This study provides unequivocal evidence that MERTK is a potent nodal regulator of fibrosis supported by detailed mechanistic studies,” the senior author Mohammed Eslam told BioWorld.
Researchers from Catholic University of Korea published data from a study that investigated the effect of miRNA-21a-5p on fibrosis development in systemic sclerosis (SSc). With the aim of assessing the pathological impact of miRNA-21a-5p on skin and lung fibrosis in vivo, a bleomycin-induced SSc murine model was developed, and the mice were hydrodynamically injected with plasmids containing pre-miRNA-21a-5p or anti-miRNA-21a-5p.
University of Nebraska has described SF-2523 derivatives acting as dual inhibitors of bromodomain-containing protein 4 (BD2 domain) (BRD4 BD2) and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) reported to be useful for the treatment of medulloblastoma and fibrosis.
Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Ltd. has reported the discovery of novel galectin-3 (Gal-3) inhibitors for the potential treatment of fibrotic and inflammatory diseases. Galactins are a family of glycan-binding proteins associated with various biological processes, including apoptosis, inflammation, fibrosis, angiogenesis, immunomodulation or tumor proliferation.
Immunoglobulin G (IgG), an antibody that participates in the response to infection, could have a specific role in metabolism. During aging, it accumulates in certain tissues inducing metabolic dysfunction and fibrosis of fat tissue. This effect could be prevented through an intracellular receptor that contributes to the delivery of IgG. A team of researchers from Columbia University and Peking University (PKU) demonstrated that reducing excess IgG improved the metabolic health of aged mice and increased their life expectancy.
Better Therapeutics Inc.’s prescription digital therapeutic (PDT) received U.S. FDA breakthrough device designation for metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), an advanced form of fatty liver disease that increases the risk of cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer but has few good treatments available.
N4 Pharma plc’s subsidiary Nanogenics Ltd. has signed a contract to start the formulation and sequence selection work to prepare its ECP-105 product for testing in preclinical studies.
CD38 is the main NAD+-hydrolyzing enzyme, and it also catabolizes nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) and other extracellular NAD+ precursors prior to their intracellular transport for NAD+ biosynthesis.
