The Technology
There is a need to repress production of steroids by the gonads (testes and ovaries) in various “steroid-dependent” diseases, most notably breast and prostate cancers, and uterine fibroids and endometriosis. Current treatments rely on GnRH agonists which shut-down the reproductive axis centrally, or more rarely, antagonists which block GnRH receptors directly; both are standardly administered in monthly injections. These treatments can have severe and long-term side-effects including depression and memory loss, while most patients inevitably suffer from menopausal type symptoms including osteoporosis, such that the recommended length of treatment is limited to 6 months.
The mechanism behind this invention is markedly different from that of current treatments: by inducing inhibitory epigenetic modifications at key genes in the pituitary gland, circulating levels of the gonadotropin hormones will be lowered, which will reducing the stimulus for the gonads to produce the sex steroids. Because repressive epigenetic modifications are maintained by endogenous mechanisms, the condense chromatin at these loci will be preserved to provide long-acting treatments. This, together with the fact that steroid production is reduced but not abolished, will reduce the side-effects for a safer more efficacious non-invasive treatment for this group of diseases, while preserving the integrity of the reproductive axis. The invention is based on new composition of various components already contained in human drugs that are currently in use or in clinical trials.
Advantages
- Stimulus for sex steroid production is reduced but not abolished
- Treatment is non-surgical, long-term and self-perpetuating but technically reversible as the reproductive tract and germ cells remain intact
- Adverse effects and risks very unlikely
- It is applicable to various steroid-dependent diseases in men and women
- Composed of components already authorized for use in human drugs
Easy and cheap to administer
Applications and Opportunities
- Treatment of endometriosis and uterine fibroids in women
- Treatment of steroid dependent cancers in men and women
- Curbing reproduction in animal populations
Business Development Contacts