Lead Product: NP-MP1
The Clinical need
The first medical condition we are addressing with our technology is the
Heart Failure with reduced Ejection Fraction (HFrEF),
a serious, invalidating syndrome that affects millions of patients.
At molecular level, a key player event in the disease onset is the dysregulation of
the L-Type Calcium Channels in the cardiomyocytes,
the cardiac cell primary involved in the contractile function of the heart.
There is a substantial pharmacotherapy gap for this condition
given that currently available treatments, such as neuro-hormonal counter
regulation drugs, do not address the underlying molecular cause of HFrEF.
Our Solution
The active principle of NP-MP1 is a propriety Mimetic Peptide (MP),
which occupies a novel and propitious niche with respect to its intracellular
mechanism of action that may contribute to the definition of
MP as a disease modifying drug.
The MP has proven effective in regulating the L-type calcium channel trafficking in
the cardiomyocytes in small and large animal models.
NP-MP1 is indeed a three-level inhalable dry powder formulation.
The active Mimetic Peptides are loaded into Calcium-Phosphate nanoparticles,
which are then embedded in lung-compatible mannitol-based microparticles.
The lung to heart journey
The three-level formulation has been engineered to assure the delivery of the
otherwise vulnerably Mimetic Peptide inside the cardiomyocytes.
The inhalable microparticles, delivered by a user-friendly inhaler,
are designed to reach the alveoli in the deep lung.
Here, the microparticles dissolve in the alveolar space, releasing the MP-loaded
nanoparticles, which translocate into the bloodstream.
MP-loaded nanoparticles enter the heart and are absorbed by cardiomyocytes,
allowing the MP to be released intracellularly.
The mechanism of action
Once inside the cardiomyocytes, MP binds to the altered LTCC,
correcting the subcellular trafficking of this channel
and restoring its physiological levels and function.
In this way, the functionality of the diseased heart is restored.