Lipids are “very diverse, but also vastly understudied,” Anne Brunet told the audience at the recent meeting on Aging Research and Drug Discovery. Advances in the ability to predict protein structures have fueled a much better understanding of the human proteome and its estimated 20,000 members. The lipidome is much larger, numbering maybe 100,000 total. And what those lipids do remains much more fuzzy. “Very little is known about their function, and especially their function during aging,” Brunet said. Slowly, however, technological advances are enabling researchers to understand the roles of lipids as well. Read More

Scinai Immunotherapeutics Ltd. (formerly Biondvax Pharmaceuticals Ltd.) has released promising results from a preclinical study of Scinai’s anti‑IL‑17 nanosized VHH antibodies (NanoAbs) as a treatment for plaque psoriasis. The alpaca‑derived recombinant variable domain of heavy-chain-only antibodies are designed to be administered locally. Read More

Researchers from Federal University of Ouro Preto and affiliated organizations presented the discovery of novel antitrypanosomal agents with activity against Trypanosoma cruzi. Read More

Hoth Therapeutics Inc. has reported promising results from sponsored preclinical research conducted at NC State University (NCSU) with HT-KIT, the company’s new molecular entity for the treatment of advance systemic mastocytosis. HT-KIT is an antisense oligonucleotide that targets the proto-oncogene c-Kit by inducing mRNA frame shifting. Read More

Sanofi SA has identified thienopyrrolotriazine compounds reported to be useful for the treatment of multiple system atrophy, frontotemporal dementia, multiple sclerosis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, brain injury, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. Read More

Previous research has validated hematopoietic progenitor kinase 1 (HPK1) as a target in immune oncology, and pharmacological inhibition of HPK1 has been shown to enhance effector T-cell function and antitumor activity. Read More

Amgen Inc. has patented new quinazoline compounds acting as GTPase KRAS (G12D mutant) inhibitors and thus reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer. Read More

Alveogene Ltd. has launched with a focus on inhaled gene therapies for respiratory disorders. The company has been created by Oxford Science Enterprises, Harrington Discovery Institute at University Hospitals, and Old College Capital in partnership with six scientists from the UK Respiratory Gene Therapy Consortium (GTC). Read More

Nurexone Biologic Inc. has completed a pre-IND meeting with the FDA in connection with the manufacturing, preclinical and clinical development plan of Exopten. Exopten is being developed to be a minimally invasive Exotherapy product for spinal cord injuries given intranasally and yielding neuron regeneration and rewiring in traumatically damaged spinal cords. Read More

Researchers at the University of Bonn and Westfälische Wilhelms-Universiteit Münster have prepared labeled compounds acting as 5’-nucleotidase (CD73) inhibitors. Read More

Targeting rearranged during transfection (RET) proto-oncogene may be an effective therapeutic strategy for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients with mutations in FLT3 and activated RET. However, few RET-targeting agents have been approved for clinical use, and no FLT3/RET dual-targeting drugs have been identified. Read More

Jiangsu Hengrui Medicine Co. Ltd. and Shanghai Hengrui Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. have divulged new soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC) activators reported to be useful for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, fibrosis, psoriasis, erectile dysfunction, multiple sclerosis, heart failure, overactive bladder and neuropathic pain, among others. Read More

Research at Medshine Discovery Inc. has led to the development of 3C-like proteinase (3CLpro; Mpro; nsp5) (SARS-CoV-2; COVID-19 virus) inhibitors potentially useful for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection (COVID-19). Read More

Calcineurin inhibitors used in clinics – including immunosuppressants for transplant rejection and autoimmune disease treatment – may cause persistent hypertension. Calcineurin inhibitors elevate sympathetic vasomotor activity by decreasing calcineurin activity and potentiating N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) activity in the hypothalamus. However, how these inhibitors promote NMDAR activity in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus to increase sympathetic vasomotor activity remains unknown. Read More

Carbonic anhydrase IX (CAIX) is a transmembrane protein involved in cell proliferation and transformation that is expressed in clear-cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), colorectal cancer (CRC), and other hypoxic tumor types, but has low expression in healthy tissues. Read More