CHARLOTTESVILLE, Virginia, April 13, 2010/ -- HemoShear, LLC, is pleased to announce that it has received its first Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant award from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The SBIR grant will fund the development of a human surrogate model of early stage blood vessel (vascular) inflammation, an important condition that leads to atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. This will be the first study ever conducted that integrates blood flow forces, critical factors in restoring blood vessel cell function, with key proteins to recreate early stages of vascular inflammatory disease.
Atherosclerosis is a blood vessel inflammatory disease characterized by build-up of plaque in the arteries, which limits blood flow and can lead to heart attack and stroke. HemoShear’s advanced model will study the human vascular response to oxidized low density lipoprotein (oxLDL), an important factor in the development of atherosclerosis. “This is a major milestone for HemoShear and addresses a significant need in the pharmaceutical industry for more meaningful human surrogate models of cardiovascular disease,” explained Brett Blackman, Ph.D., Co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of HemoShear. “This model of early atherosclerosis disease will deliver a wealth of knowledge about vascular whole-genome human biology under conditions that promote the progression of atherosclerosis, one of the leading causes of death in the western world.”
Human cell-based technologies are used increasingly during drug research and development to mimic human response more accurately. HemoShear’s proprietary technology uniquely incorporates human vascular cells and blood flow (hemodynamic) forces to mimic healthy and diseased conditions in the blood vessel system. The technology enables investigation of the cellular and molecular mechanisms of vascular disease and the identification of novel biomarkers and disease pathways that are necessary for development of improved drug therapies.
“Pharmaceutical and medical researchers have told us that they need access to systems that reveal the true underlying mechanisms of diseases. Our oxLDL model of early stage atherosclerosis will provide insights that will spur more targeted research,” said Brian Wamhoff, Ph.D., Co-founder and Vice President of Research and Development at HemoShear. “We fully expect that the oxLDL model will help unmask the biology of atherosclerosis and enable the discovery of improved treatments.”
About HemoShear, LLC
HemoShear’s proprietary technology recreates physiological function of human cells and tissue by applying human-derived blood flow forces to cultures of primary human vascular cells in the laboratory. HemoShear works in strategic partnerships with pharmaceutical companies to identify and validate pathways of disease progression, and to assess the efficacy and safety of new drug compounds. The Company’s breakthrough technology will reduce risk of costly drug development failures significantly while speeding successful new drugs to market. For information about HemoShear, please visit www.hemoshear.com.
