EMERYVILLE, Calif., July 26 /PRNewswire/ -- KineMed, Inc., a pathway-based drug discovery and development company, announced a poster presentation at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory meeting, 'Glia in Health and Disease,' in Cold Spring Harbor, New York. The presentation described a novel method for quantifying cell proliferation rates for brain microglia, the resident immune cells of the central nervous system which mediate neuroinflammation and contribute to the pathogenesis of many neurodegenerative diseases.
As described in the poster entitled, "Measurement Of Brain Microglia Proliferation Rates In Vivo By Heavy Water Labeling: Effects Of Neuroinflammatory Stimuli And Application To Drug Discovery", the Company has demonstrated that KineMed's stable isotope labeling and mass spectrometric analysis technology has the unique ability to quantify the formation of new microglial cells in the brain and that the proliferation of these microglial cells is a highly sensitive biomarker of neuroinflammation. The poster reported how these methods were validated in animal models of neuroinflammation and how this sensitive, high-throughput assay has been used to discover novel agents that inhibit neuroinflammation. By applying this assay, KineMed researchers have discovered a potent and novel suppressor of neuroinflammation, confirming the predictive power of pathway-based discoveries for therapeutic efficacy.
David Fineman, President and CEO of KineMed, commented, "The findings confirm the power of indications discovery when the effect on complex metabolic pathways is measured in vivo using KineMed's highly sensitive biomarkers. Our platform allows us to more accurately detect drug effects and link them to clinical response in an animal model."
Marc Hellerstein, M.D., Ph.D., Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board of KineMed, stated, "A couple of points about this work are particularly impressive. First, the kinetics of brain microglia appear to be a much more sensitive and reproducible metric of neuroinflammation than any of the markers that have previously been used in this field. This technical advance should therefore permit the accurate detection of subtle differences in therapeutic efficacy among candidate drugs. Second, it is remarkable that KineMed's screening initiative with this biomarker already has identified a highly potent inhibitor of neuroinflammation and, moreover, that the kinetic assay predicted efficacy in independent models, such as the EAE mouse model of multiple sclerosis." Dr. Hellerstein concluded, "The fact that the active compound discovered with KineMed's assay already has extensive human use in other conditions, but was not recognized to have anti-neuroinflammatory actions, speaks to the power of the pathway-based indications discovery approach when sensitive, in vivo assays are available."
KineMed KineMarker(TM) Product Programs in Neurobiology
KineMed's proprietary in vivo KineMarker(TM) assays provide new, sensitive and high-throughput measures of several key biological pathways involved in the pathogenesis and treatment of psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders. These assays can be used in clinical, as well as, preclinical settings.
KineMed's Neuroinflammation KineMarker(TM) is more sensitive, reproducible and high-throughput than traditional methods, such as histological staining and is safer than traditional radioisotope labeling methods.
Other areas of neurobiology where KineMed has active discovery programs include Mood disorders, ALS, Multiple Sclerosis and Alzheimer's disease, as well as Learning and Memory.
About KineMed, Inc.
KineMed, Inc. is a pathway-based drug discovery and development company employing its proprietary biomarker technology (AquaTag(TM) and KineMarker(TM)) to measure the real-time activity of drugs in whole body systems. KineMed is developing therapeutics both on its own and with pharma collaborators, efficiently translating compounds into drugs with a desired biological effect on validated disease pathways. KineMed's technology expedites the drug development process and has demonstrated results in metabolic disorders, neurodegeneration, diseases of inflammation and cancer, among other conditions. For further information about KineMed, please visit: http://www.kinemed.com/
KineMed, Inc.CONTACT: Brent Vaughan, Chief Business Officer of KineMed, Inc.,+1-510-655-6525, ext. 110; or Media: Justin Jackson of Burns McClellan,jjackson@burnsmc.com, or Investors: John Cummings, jcummings@burnsmc.com,both of Burns McClellan for KineMed, Inc., +1-212-213-0006
Web site: http://www.kinemed.com/
