A team of Hong Kong scientists is developing an injectable treatment that could potentially improve blood flow in diabetes patients’ feet, in the hopes that it will reduce the need for amputation by rebuilding tissue in the arteries.
They also hope to apply the treatment to peripheral artery disease or PAD, a condition caused by the build-up of fatty deposits in arteries that affect blood circulation in the feet.
Jack Wong Wing-tak, associate professor of the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s (CUHK) school of life sciences, said he and his team aimed to find a solution for patients suffering from these conditions by developing an injectable drug.
“Traditional treatments for people suffering from poor blood flow in their legs are stent implantation or bypass surgery, which is invasive,” said Wong, who is also the co-founder of a biotechnology company called NutrigeneAI.
Wong said that PAD often began with damage to the inner layer of blood vessels, known as the endothelium.
Foot problems are also commonly seen in patients with diabetes as the disease can reduce blood flow to the limbs, which can result in amputation if the condition is severe.
The two conditions are related in that diabetes significantly increases the risk of PAD due to high blood sugar damaging blood vessels, leading to plaque build-up, inflammation and reduced blood flow.
Wong’s research team is developing a novel cell-based treatment aimed at improving the blood circulation of PAD patients.
Through differentiating stem cells into endothelial cells, endothelium can be formed in the laboratory and then used as an injectable drug for patients.
The team conducted tests on diabetic mice by injecting the drug into the tissue that lacked blood flow for one to two weeks. The results showed significant improvement in blood flow recovery and an increase in the formation of new microvessels, with no cases of relapse observed during the study period.
“We can see there are a lot of bottlenecks in current cardiovascular disease treatments. Even if the patients changed their lifestyles, it still might not be effective,” Wong said.
He said it was his dream to turn research in the academic field into actual clinical treatments. But he added that the team still needed three to four years for further research on the treatment.
Before testing it on humans, the team would have to carry out tests on large animals such as pigs and monkeys to ensure its safety, he said.
NutrigeneAI is currently in the angel fundraising round and aims to raise HK$30 million (US$3.8 million) to help it continue with preclinical trial research.
“This funding is crucial for advancing our clinical trials and meeting regulatory requirements for drug applications,” Wong said, adding that they also planned to apply for government support in the future.
Wong’s company is among about 40 exhibitors that will be showcased at CUHK Entrepreneurship Day on September 19 and 20.
Illuminatio, a medical technology firm founded by experts in medical imaging, clinical radiology and business management, will also be one of the exhibitors.
Its team has developed a patented pulse sequence and software that can be installed on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners. After installing the sequence, the software can generate MRI images with a heat map visualisation that indicates macromolecules in the body.
Danny Chen Junsheng, Illuminatio’s chief operating officer, explained that macromolecules like proteins and enzymes were often associated with conditions such as fibrosis and inflammation.
“Traditional MRI images depended heavily on the experience of the radiologist, while our new technology could be more standardised,” Chen said, adding that it would be easier for doctors to trace different stages of diseases or detect them earlier with the heat map visualisation of the MRI images.
The team collaborated with Prince of Wales Hospital in Sha Tin and installed its technology into one of the hospital’s MRI scanners. The technology was used on patients with liver fibrosis and nearly 200 MRI images have been generated.
Chen said the team’s ultimate goal was to use the technology on patients with brain diseases, as MRI scanners were usually used to diagnose brain disorders.
The company signed a contract with a Chinese MRI company called Neusoft in July and will carry out multi-centre clinical studies in the coming year or two.
Illuminatio is currently self-funded and will seek angel or seed funding in the future, with the aim of raising about US$2 million to US$3 million.
Original source: cn