Experimental Drug may Prove Beneficial Against Life-threatening Respiratory Diseases

Potentially fatal conditions arising from an uncontrolled secretion of mucins in the airways like asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and cystic fibrosis (CF), as well as lung disease resulting from cancer and its treatment, can now be treated using a drug developed by scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, as published in the journal Nature. “Mucus is a significant problem in pulmonary medicine, because in people with these common lung diseases, thick mucus can block the airways and cause symptoms ranging from a mild cough to very serious decreases in lung function. Most drugs for these conditions work to reduce inflammation or expand the airways to help people breathe better, but mucus is the most serious issue. Our research has created the first drug that would stop the secretion of mucins in its tracks,” says Burton Dickey, M.D., professor of Pulmonary Medicine and co-corresponding author of the study.

In the U.S., about 25 million people have asthma, 16 million adults have been diagnosed with COPD and CF is the most common life-threatening, genetic disease.

The study team found that the drug named stapled peptide SP9 was beneficial in the blockade of a specific protein (synaptotagmin-2 (Syt2)) that was the best protein to target to block mucin secretion.

Further data validation may help formulate typical therapeutics against lung diseases.

Source-Medindia