{"id":17100,"date":"2014-03-10T16:55:02","date_gmt":"2014-03-10T20:55:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sciencebusiness.technewslit.com\/?p=17100"},"modified":"2014-03-10T16:55:02","modified_gmt":"2014-03-10T20:55:02","slug":"start-up-company-licenses-university-stroke-drug-research","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/technewslit.com\/sciencebusiness\/?p=17100","title":{"rendered":"Start-Up Company Licenses University Stroke Drug Research"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"CT<\/a>
CT scan of stroke victim’s brain (National Library of Medicine)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

10 March 2014. Zocere Inc.<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a0Albuquerque, New Mexico is licensing a neurological protein from University of New Mexico for development into a drug to protect ischemic stroke victims from extensive brain damage. Financial terms of the deal with the university’s technology transfer office<\/a> were not disclosed.<\/p>\n

Nearly 800,000 people in the U.S. have a stroke<\/a> each year, causing some 130,000 deaths. About 87 percent of strokes are ischemic strokes<\/a>, caused by a clot blocking blood flow to the brain. The current standard of care for ischemic strokes are\u00a0tissue plasminogen activators<\/a>, given intravenously to dissolve the clots. To be effective, tissue plasminogen activators, such as Activase<\/a> made by Genentech, must be given within three hours of the onset of stroke symptoms, a short window for administering the treatment.<\/p>\n

Zocere, founded last year as Tyrosine Pharma, is licensing the research of New Mexico neurologist\u00a0Surojit Paul<\/a>, a faculty member in the university’s health sciences center. Paul studies neurological phenomena connected to\u00a0excitotoxicity, a condition resulting from overstimulation of glutamate<\/a>, a signalling chemical involved in many brain functions.\u00a0Excitotoxicity is linked to several serious neurological disorders, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease), traumatic brain injury, and ischemic stroke.<\/p>\n

Much of Paul’s work is focused on <\/span>N-Methyl-D-aspartate or NMDA receptors<\/a> for glutamate signals that allow excessive levels of calcium to enter brain cells, resulting in damage to those cells. His studies led to development of a protein,\u00a0STriatal Enriched Phosphatase or Step, that regulates NMDA receptors and thus has potential for limiting damage to brain cells. <\/span><\/p>\n

Step, says Zocere, is the basis for a peptide made in the lab from engineered bacteria and then purified. The peptide derived from Step\u00a0<\/span>can permeate cells, cross the blood-brain barrier, and resist degradation. The company says tests on lab animals with induced stroke show intravenous injections with the Step peptide can reduce brain damage.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Zocere’s plans to conduct further preclinical research on the Step peptide, but is seeking partners in the pharmaceutical industry for clinical development and regulatory approvals.<\/p>\n

Read more:<\/p>\n