Naibec Proves Efficacy in Treating Intractable Disease 'Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension'..."Discussing Development with Global Pharmaceutical Companies"

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunseok Yoo] Peptide fusion bio company Nivec announced on the 26th that one of its major pipelines, the ‘pulmonary fibrosis treatment (NIPEP-PF),’ has also been proven effective against the rare disease ‘pulmonary arterial hypertension’ through animal experiments (mice).

In this animal experiment, Nivec compared and observed improvements in vascular thickness and inflammation in a situation where ‘pulmonary arterial hypertension’ induced by ‘monocrotaline’ and a protein therapeutic acting on the ‘ALK (anaplastic lymphoma kinase) receptor’ were administered.

The vascular thickness of mice induced with ‘pulmonary arterial hypertension’ increased by about 400% compared to normal mice, and as a result of administering the ‘protein therapeutic acting on the ALK receptor,’ the thickness returned to a level similar to that of normal mice. The number of inflammatory cells such as white blood cells present in lung tissue also significantly decreased, confirming that the ‘protein therapeutic acting on the ALK receptor’ is effective in improving pulmonary hypertension and inflammation.

‘Pulmonary arterial hypertension’ is a rare intractable disease in which abnormalities occur in the pulmonary artery that delivers blood from the heart to the lungs, causing pressure to rise. It is known to be difficult to diagnose and has a very high fatality rate. If not properly treated, it is a high-risk disease that can lead to death within an average of 2 to 3 years. It is also known that the incidence of pulmonary arterial hypertension increases in cases of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus, and systemic sclerosis.

Currently approved treatments for this ‘pulmonary arterial hypertension’ only delay the narrowing of the pulmonary artery. There are currently no treatments that can fundamentally cure the disease.

Focusing on the fact that ‘pulmonary arterial hypertension’ occurs due to mutations in the ALK receptor causing apoptosis of vascular endothelial cells and structural changes in the artery, a ‘protein acting on the ALK receptor’ was administered. The company explained that it was able to maintain the survival of vascular endothelial cells and the integrity of blood vessels.

A Nivec official said, “Regarding the ‘protein therapeutic acting on the ALK receptor,’ we were able to significantly shorten the research period by simultaneously conducting mass production research from the screening stage,” adding, “We have already established a mass production process and plan to conduct preclinical toxicity tests next year and apply for clinical phase 1 trials.”

He added, “Since June, after ‘BioUSA,’ we have been continuously discussing the technology with global pharmaceutical companies interested in pulmonary arterial hypertension treatments.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.