Background

Heart and muscle diseases are a major source of morbidity in mortality. Indeed, cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death worldwide, claiming more lives than all forms of cancer combined. According to the American Heart Association, approximately half of all American adults now have some form of CVD. Heart disease impacts the ability to effectively pump blood, ultimately leading to cardiac failure. There is no single curative treatment and the complexity and variation in CVD cases further compounds the difficulty in managing this deadly disease. There are a number of limitations with existing treatments including the requirement for invasive surgery and the propensity for developing tolerance to frontline medications.

Hence, more effective strategies are urgently needed to reduce mortality and morbidity rates for CVD. Similarly, few treatment options exist for severe muscle diseases, which significantly impact quality of life. Myosin is a major motor protein that regulates muscle contraction, playing a critical role in cardiac and skeletal muscle function. Researchers at UNT hve developed a non-invasive, targeted therapy that could significantly improve clinical outcomes for CVD and potentially serve as a strategy for combatting obesity and muscle diseases.

Technology Overview

Researchers at UNT have engineered novel peptides with high specificity for myosin subfragment-2 as a novel, targeted therapy. In addition to its potential in treating CVD, this technology could also serve as a strategy for combatting obesity and muscle diseases based on its specificity for the functional domain of myosin. Myosin-based mechanisms have been shown to control the time and strength of contraction in both skeletal and heart muscle. Preliminary data for this technology demonstrate high specificity for both cardiac and skeletal myosin and validate the use of the engineered stabilizer and destabilizer peptides in modulating muscle activity via direct interaction with the myosin coiled coil.

Stage of Development

Preclinical.

Benefits

Non-invasive, targeted treatment for CVD, muscle diseases, weight management to counter obesity
Mitigate risk for drug tolerance & improve treatment outcomes
Novel peptides with high specificity for myosin subfragment-2, the critical component that regulates muscle contraction
Demonstrated specificity for both cardiac and skeletal myosin
Demonstrated ability to increase or decrease the stability of myosin with stabilizer and destabilizer peptides

High Affinity Peptide Modulation of Myosin Subfragment-2 as a Treatment for Heart, Obesity, and Muscle Diseases

IP Status

Seeking