ATLANTA, March 9, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Inhibikase Therapeutics, a clinical-stage specialty pharmaceutical company developing kinase inhibitors to treat neurodegenerative diseases and infections in the brain, announced today that the company has received a $433,000 research grant from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) to help fund pre-IND studies of the company’s novel c-Abl kinase inhibitors as a potential disease-modifying treatment for Parkinson’s disease (PD).
“Recent scientific discoveries point to a role of c-Abl kinase in the progression of Parkinson’s disease. In our ongoing pursuit of orally administered, brain-penetrant c-Abl inhibitors to treat major diseases in the brain, we have generated c-Abl kinase inhibitors that have demonstrated the ability to block neurodegeneration in preclinical models of the disease,” said Milton Werner, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Inhibikase. “We are grateful to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for its support as we continue our work to validate this potential disease-modifying therapy that may impede the progression of Parkinson’s disease.”
Using its proprietary RAMP technology engine, Inhibikase has discovered and developed a series of c-Abl kinase inhibitors and validated their activity in preclinical animal models for multiple therapeutic indications in the brain. Building on newly discovered mechanistic data, the company evaluated its RAMP molecules in preclinical animal models of PD, demonstrating that these molecules are capable of blocking the progressive death of dopamine-producing neurons that drives PD and thus acting as a potential disease-modifying therapy for PD.
The grant will support studies of the activity and pharmacology of the RAMP molecules in a newly defined mouse model that recapitulates many of the hallmarks of the progressive disease process in humans. RAMP molecules that pass these tests will be positioned to advance through the regulatory requirements to begin clinical testing.
This work supplements two-FDA approved clinical studies under way by Inhibikase that are evaluating commercial anti-cancer c-Abl inhibitors as potential bridging therapies in PD until the company’s RAMP molecules reach clinical testing in humans.
About Inhibikase Therapeutics (www.inhibikase.com)
Inhibikase Therapeutics, Inc. is a clinical-stage specialty pharmaceutical company innovating small-molecule therapeutics that target central nervous system (CNS) diseases, including neurodegenerative diseases and life-threatening brain infections. Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Atlanta, with offices in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Inhibikase Therapeutics is transforming the pathway to blunt and reverse diseases in the brain and CNS.
About The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research
As the world’s largest nonprofit funder of Parkinson’s research, The Michael J. Fox Foundation is dedicated to accelerating a cure for Parkinson’s disease and improved therapies for those living with the condition today. The Foundation pursues its goals through an aggressively funded, highly targeted research program coupled with active global engagement of scientists, Parkinson’s patients, business leaders, clinical trial participants, advocacy volunteers and donors. In addition to funding more than $700 million in research to date, the Foundation has fundamentally altered the trajectory of progress toward a cure. Operating at the hub of worldwide Parkinson’s research, the Foundation forges groundbreaking collaborations with industry leaders, academic scientists and government research funders; increases the flow of participants into Parkinson’s disease clinical trials with its online tool, Fox Trial Finder; promotes Parkinson’s awareness through high-profile advocacy, events and outreach; and coordinates the grassroots involvement of thousands of Team Fox members around the world. For more information, visit www.michaeljfox.org.
Contact:
Mary Moynihan
M2Friend Biocommunications
mary@m2friend.com
(802) 951-9600
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SOURCE Inhibikase
