Unmet Need / Invention Novelty: Current treatments for ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and spinal cord injury (SCI) fail to halt progression of AS or prevent the fibrotic scar formation following SCI respectively. There is an unmet need to develop therapeutic strategies that bring disease remission in AS and prevent fibrotic scar formation following SCI.
Technical Details: A researcher at Johns Hopkins has uncovered a novel therapeutic strategy for AS and SCI based on observations of chondrogenesis mediating progression of AS through heterotopic ossification (HO) and SCI recovery in neonatal mice respectively, both of which implicate TGF-β activity. The strategy consists of inhibiting TGF-β activity to inhibit aberrant cartilage formation and/or osteoclast resorption in AS or inhibit fibrotic scar formation following SCI. In proof of concept in vivo studies, inhibition of TGF-β activity inhibited fibrotic scar formation following SCI in mice.
Value Proposition:
- Novel treatment for aberrant cartilage formation and/or osteoclast resorption in AS
- Novel preventative strategy that inhibits fibrotic scar formation following SCI
- Broadly applicable to other disorders characterized by HO and/or TGF-β activity
Looking for Partners to: Develop & commercialize as a novel therapeutic strategy for AS and novel preventative strategy for fibrotic scar formation following SCI.
Stage of Development: Pre-Clinical
Data Availability: in vitro and in vivo
Inventors: Xu Cao
Patent Status: Pending PCT application
Publication(s): Yu T, Zhang J, Zhu W, et al. Chondrogenesis mediates progression of ankylosing spondylitis through heterotopic ossification. Bone Res. 2021;9(1):19. Published 2021 Mar 17. doi:10.1038/s41413-021-00140-6
