Jiangxi Jemincare Group Co. Ltd. has reported that its wholly owned subsidiary company, Shanghai Jemincare Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., recently received approvals for clinical trials of five of its drugs in the fields of cancer, kidney and infectious diseases.
Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Inc. has filed an application in New Zealand seeking clearance to initiate a phase I/IIa trial of ARO-CFB, the company’s investigational RNA interference (RNAi) therapeutic being developed as a potential treatment for complement-mediated renal disease, such as immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN).
Researchers from Taisho Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. have reported initial evaluation of novel pyrazolylpyridine derivatives with increased selectivity for inhibition of the 20-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (20-HETE) synthase CYP4A11/4F2, to be developed as candidates for the treatment of renal fibrosis.
Aria Pharmaceuticals Inc. has synthesized compounds acting as caspase-1 (IL-1β-converting enzyme) and pyroptosis inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of alopecia, autoimmune hemolytic anemia, chronic kidney disease, duodenal ulcer, hepatitis B, osteoarthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus and uveitis, among others.
Daiichi Sankyo Co. Ltd. and Kyoto Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. have identified Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (Keap1)/Nrf2 interaction inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of acute lung injury, chronic kidney disease, autism, Alzheimer's disease, dry eye, heart failure, psoriasis and Sjögren's syndrome, among others.
It has been previously demonstrated that the two coding variants in the APOL1 gene (G1 and G2) are associated with a greater risk of progressive, proteinuric kidney disease; however, there currently are no therapies to address the causal genetic drivers of this disease. Researchers from Maze Therapeutics Inc. presented the discovery and preclinical characterization of a novel small-molecule inhibitor of APOL1, MZ-302, and they evaluated its efficacy in a new transgenic model of APOL1-mediated kidney disease (AKD).
PYC Therapeutics Ltd. has announced the results of a study of PYC-003 conducted in human 3D models derived from patients with end-stage renal failure due to autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (PKD).
G1 and G2 genetic variants of the human APOL1 gene have been previously associated with an increased risk of developing chronic kidney diseases (CKD) in the African American population, and recent studies have shown that inhibition of APOL1 ion channel function could represent a novel therapeutic strategy for the treatment of patients with APOL1-like nephropathies.