A service to identify anti-fibrotic activity of novel small molecules and biologicals, with opportunities for licensing a new combination therapy.
Our innovative assay uses in-cell ELISA to monitor the inhibition of fibrotic activity by your test compound.
Fibrosis, the accumulation of extracellular matrix proteins due to chronic inflammation, is the common underlying pathology in several diseases. It accounts for 42% of deaths worldwide.
Common examples are idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, hepatic fibrosis (cirrhosis), kidney fibrosis, heart fibrosis, scleroderma, Dupuytren’s contracture and Peyronie’s disease, although any organ in the body can be affected. Pathophysiology is complex and multi-factorial.
Two drugs are approved for the treatment of fibrosis, but they halt disease progression rather than providing a cure. Although potential targets for new active compounds have been proposed, none have resulted in a effective pharmaceutical.
Our phenotypic screening method detects antifibrotic action in existing FDA approved drugs or compound libraries. Primary human fibroblasts cultured in vitro can be induced to transform into myofibroblasts, an indicator of fibrotic activity in vivo. The change in cell phenotype is monitored by In-Cell ELISA of phenotypic markers. Inhibition of the transition by a test compound is evidence of an anti-fibrotic action. This novel, rapid and robust assay can be used to screen a large library of potential drug candidates at low cost. The assay will be most cost-effective to screen existing pharmaceuticals approved by the FDA for other indications.
Our screening assay is available as a service.
Assays are conducted on 96-well plates, with a capacity for testing up to 30 drugs, compounds or combinations. Any drug or compound showing a positive effect can be further investigated by conducting an additional assay to create a dose response curve. Two compound concentration response curves can be conducted per 96-well plate.
If you do not have 30 compounds to screen to complete a plate, we recommend compounds are combined to investigate potential combination therapies.
By screening available FDA-approved drugs, we've identified a new combination therapy for Peyronie’s disease. A patent application has been filed and the method is available for licensing by a commercial partner.
Rapid phenotypic screening for anti-fibrotic activity (PDF)
Contact Dr Rana Zayadin for more information.