Exogenous Rac1 analogs to treat acute lung injury

This technology uses exogenous Rac1 analogs in their active form to prevent acute lung injury and acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Unmet Need: Pharmacological treatment for treating or preventing acute lung injury

Life-threatening tissue injury to critical organs can occur because of host-pathogen interactions involving proinflammatory receptors. In the lungs, prolonged inflammation from infection leads to acute lung injury (ALI), which can result in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), a condition that is associated with high mortality. So far, no pharmacological treatments are available for ALI, making it difficult to prevent ARDS in pathogenic cases.

The Technology: Exogenous Rac1 analogs for protection against acute lung injury

¬ This technology is a method for preventing or treating acute lung injury (ALI) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) by administering the activated form of Rac1 (V12Rac1). V12Rac1 is an f-actin stabilizing biologic able to block the lung’s proinflammatory receptor. This technology enriches the lung’s epithelial lining with V12Rac1, preventing prolonged inflammation due to infection. This technology can be used to help prevent and treat ALI and ARDS in subjects diagnosed with or at risk of developing these conditions.

Applications:

• Treatment or prevention of ALI and ARDS
• Pharmacological treatment for multiple organ failure due to sepsis, infection, or toxin inhalation
• Prevention of lung injury in donor lungs during transplantation
• Research tool to analyze mechanisms of infection-triggered inflammation

Advantages:

• Protective against ALI and ARDS
• Effectively blocks the lung’s proinflammatory receptor
• Prevents tissue damage due to infection
• Useful research tool to study the inflammatory response of the respiratory system

Lead Inventor:

Jahar Bhattacharya, MBBS, DPhil

Patent Information:

Patent Pending

Related Publications:

• Gusarova GA, Das SR, Islam MN, Westphalen K, Jin G, Shmarakov IO, Li L, Bhattacharya S, Bhattacharya J. “Actin fence therapy with exogenous V12Rac1 protects against acute lung injury.” JCI Insight, 2021 Mar 22; 6(6):e135753

Tech Ventures Reference:

• IR CU23206, CU23227

• Licensing Contact: Jerry Kokoshka