Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the single most common cause of viral bronchiolitis among children worldwide, yet no successful treatment currently exists. Severe RSV infections can cause bronchiolar obstruction, air trapping, and emphysema, and a therapeutic strategy that mitigates damaging immune responses to viruses without sacrificing antiviral activity is needed
Description
University of Pittsburgh researchers have synthesized antioxidant cerium oxide nanoparticles (CNPs) in various shapes, which have demonstrated about 9-fold greater antioxidant activity compared to commercial antioxidant Trolox. These crystalline nanoparticles have been proven safe in preclinical studies and can be tolerated up to 100mg/kg for 10 days in male rats. CNPs may also potentially be combined with other drugs or vaccines as adjuvants to achieve better therapeutic outcomes not only in RSV, but various infections and diseases including cancer with similar pathologies.
CNPs are known to scavenge oxygen species through their superoxide dismutase (SOD)-mimetic or antioxidant catalase-mimetic ability through trivalent cerium (Ce3+). The ROS-scavenging activity of CNPs is directly proportional to oxygen vacancies on their surface.
Applications
• Treating RSV disease
• Modulating oxidative stress in various diseases or infections with similar pathologie
Advantages
• Proven safe in preclinical studies
• CNPs have demonstrated 9-fold greater antioxidant activity compared to commercial antioxidant Trolox
• CNPs have potential to modulate oxidative stress in various diseases or infections with similar pathology to RSV
• CNPs can be combined with other drugs or vaccines to achieve better therapeutic outcomes
Invention Readiness
Pitt researchers have shown in cell lines and animal models that the ROS-scavenging activity of CNPs mitigates oxidative stress-induced calcification in patient-derived primary valve interstitial cells. They have also demonstrated that such ROS-scavenging activity of CNPs is dependent on their shape. The nanoparticle shape can influence cellular uptake, as seen in the enhanced specificity of cancer cell lines for rod-shaped ligand-coated nanoparticles compared to their spherical counterpart.
IP Status
https://patents.google.com/patent/WO2023168056A2
