Therapeutic hypothermia (TH), in which body temperature is lowered for an extended period following cardiac arrest, is one of the very few clinically approved therapies to treat the ischemic brain injury that can result from lack of blood flow to the brain. However, TH carries its own risks, such as fluid and electrolyte imbalances, arrhythmia, insulin resistance, and coagulation problems. New drug therapies are desperately needed.
Description
Activation of pro-death caspase proteins play a key role in cellular injury in the brain. A reagent used in the synthesis of anthraquinone dyes, anthraquinone-2-sulfonic acid sodium salt (AQ2S), showed surprising and remarkable therapeutic benefits in tests in which it was included as a control. AQ2S inhibited injury-induced activation of multiple pro-death caspases. In addition, AQ2S prevents primary neuron death induced by oxidative damage and can prevent cell death induced by some toxic agents. In effect, AQ2S represents a groundbreaking new method of chemically inducing hypothermia-related protective mechanisms.
Applications
· Neuroprotection
· Treatment of cellular injury
· Preventing toxicity-induced cell death
Advantages
· Provides the same therapeutic benefits as TH, without the risk of associated side effects
· Treatment is easily administered
Invention Readiness
In vitro data
IP Status
https://patents.google.com/patent/US20150141488A1; https://patents.google.com/patent/US20170239200A1
