Biotech firm turns cell pump research inside out for safer drugs

For years researchers and drug developers have sought ways to 'turn off' structures known as cellular transport pumps (CTPs) in order to prevent CTPs from pumping medications out of target cells (oncology research for example has isolated and sought to deactivate CTPs which pump chemotherapy out of tumor cells). However, seemingly for the first time, scientists with Limerick Bioscience are turning this paradigm upside-down, designing molecules that can activate certain CTPs in order to protect vulnerable organs from common toxic side effects.

Limerick develops companion compounds that act on CTPs so that, when administered with other pharmaceuticals, they can essentially pump the primary drug out of toxicity-vulnerable cells, tissues and organs, such as the brain or liver. Recent positive Phase Ia data for its lead LIM-0705 compound, which was used with a drug designed to inhibit the body's rejection of transplanted organs, support Limerick's approach. Other benefits may also include:

' Potential improved dosing: By reducing the primary drug's toxic footprint, Limerick's compounds could allow for more aggressive and beneficial dosing of existing drugs.
' New hope for old compounds: They could open the door for researchers to revisit old drug candidates that were rejected for toxicity issues.
' Implications for metabolic diseases: Beyond companion compounds, Limerick is also developing standalone compounds that harness these cellular transporter mechanisms to treat conditions like high cholesterol and diabetes.