Dyamid's GAD gene is a potential therapeutic for reducing pain associated with Diabetes, Neuropathy and Cancer
Diamyd Medical AB reported that the GAD gene can potentially be used for treatment of pain and neuropathy - common complications of diabetes and cancer. Diamyd Medical has an exclusive license for the GAD65 gene from the University of California in Los Angeles.
The University of Michigan Health System writes in a press release that researchers at Ann Arbor Healthcare System and the University of Michigan have developed a GAD-based system for blockade of nerve signals which cause pain associated with neuropathy. The results, published in the June edition of Annals of Neurology, demonstrate that gene therapy with GAD (glutamic acid decarboxylase) has been successfully employed to inhibit pain in an animal model. The researchers are apparently now planning to test this application in a Phase I clinical trial with cancer patients.
Using a common but harmless Herpes virus as vector, the GAD gene is delivered to nerve ganglia near the spinal cord. While the vector remains in the ganglia, the product of the expressed GAD gene, the GAD enzyme, is transported to the nerve terminals where it triggers production of the potent inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA.
"We will now contact the researchers in the USA to learn in more detail precisely what has been done and to discuss potential future development. If it is the case that our GAD can be used to develop a therapeutic agent against pain, this can be very significant for the company, as our licensed patent rights give us protection for use of the GAD65 gene until 2021 in the USA", says Anders Essen-Moller, CEO in Diamyd Medical.
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Topic world Gene therapy
Genetic diseases once considered untreatable are now at the center of innovative therapeutic approaches. Research and development of gene therapies in biotech and pharma aim to directly correct or replace defective or missing genes to combat disease at the molecular level. This revolutionary approach promises not only to treat symptoms, but to eliminate the cause of the disease itself.
Topic world Gene therapy
Genetic diseases once considered untreatable are now at the center of innovative therapeutic approaches. Research and development of gene therapies in biotech and pharma aim to directly correct or replace defective or missing genes to combat disease at the molecular level. This revolutionary approach promises not only to treat symptoms, but to eliminate the cause of the disease itself.