Did some research today on the potential of Brilac
Post# of 72440
Brilacidin-The most clinically researched Defensin must be researched in treating several infectious diseases such as influenza and the COVID-19, but also chronic inflammatory disorders, wound healing and even cancers.
“A number of pathogens are increasingly resistant to existing antibiotics and antifungals.” WHO claims that a post-antibiotic era is coming upon us as antibiotic resistance and multidrug-resistant bacteria is becoming a growing concern. “Resistant strains of bacteria/fungus/yeast are regularly being found for almost every antimicrobial used clinically. On the other hand, a decline in the approval of new antibiotics has further exacerbated the problem, leading to an antibiotic crisis.
One promising approach against antibiotic resistance are AMPs (Anti-Microbial Peptides) as they induce little resistance. AMPs cause “membrane disruption…entangle microbes, affect many cytoplasmic processes, such as cell wall, protein and nucleic acid synthesis, and hinder the formation of bacterial biofilms. In addition, they can act as immunomodulating agents, controlling inflammation and other septic responses to infections. It has been suggested that many AMPs act on the bacterial invader causing different stresses, until their combined action causes the cell death.”
FYI: AMPs can also be known as Host Defense Peptides (HDPs) or Cationic Host Defense Peptides (CHDPs).
There are several AMP families, one being “Defensins” in which they are the first line of defense against foreign invasion of the body. These defensins protect the host through their direct or indirect activities on microbes such as bacteria, viruses and fungi. AMPs therefore control infections by killing the foreign bacteria, virus, etc. through its microbicidal properties while also resolving inflammation.
In other words, AMPs exhibit anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal, anti-biofilm(build up of bacteria such as plaque), chemoattraction (anti-cancer), and antiviral characteristics.
AMPs can be produced in the following body sites: WBC (Defensins, Cathelicidins); kidney; small intestine; eye; skin (soap can wash AMPs off causing E. Coli to grow!); tongue; airways; colon; reproductive tract. AMPs can also be found in lymphocytes.
AMPs have “…the potential to become a preventative strategy against viral infections, especially during emerging pandemics. In addition, the simplicity of AMPs makes the development of synthetic peptide analogues a cost-effective measure to treat established viral infections. AMPs and their synthetic derivatives are a promising avenue to yield new strategies to control and treat a wide range of viral diseases but their application is still at the preliminary stages. Therefore, further research is warranted to understand AMP antiviral activity both in vivo and in vitro and to determine underlying mechanisms involved in AMP-mediated immune modulation for clinical applications.”
Brilacidin is a synthetic defensin-mimetic drug [synthetic defensin-mimetic drugs are AMPs that are less toxic, cheaper to manufacture, more stable during storage or upon adminsitration, more potent and more selective (potent against target while leaving host cells unaffected) than natural defensin-mimetics or natural AMPs].
Brilacidin functions as an anti-microbial that causes rapid bacterial cell death. “This rapid killing ability makes antibiotic resistance less likely.”
Brilacidin’s defensin-based therapeutic has been through more clinical testing than any other defensin-based therapeutic drug. Through clinical testing, Brilacidin has already demonstrated broad and robust anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory properties in multiple FDA clinical trials (treatment of ABSSSI, IBD, OM and soon a topical agent for Atopic Dermatitis and Acne).
Immunomodulators, like Brilacidin, have “…antimicrobial peptide rhesus θ-defensin 1, which have shown to have an anti-SARS-CoV effect (The virus responsible for COVID-19).” In pre-clinical tests, Brilacidin has shown to “disrupt viral replication” while “enhancing the protective role of natural surfactants in the lung”. Therefore, Brilacidin “…might help reduce the time to possible disease resolution toward preventing deaths”.
Brilacidin will be researched for its anti-viral properties that could possibly control and/or treat the COVID-19 and other RNA viruses (I.e. influenza, RSV, Rhinovirus, Adenovirus, HPV-16, HSV, HIV, Vaccinia Virus, Zika Virus, Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus).
Currently, virologists are not only studying AMPs antiviral properties but their “…regulation of inflammation and chemo-attraction.”
Question 1: Will researchers also help IPIX evaluate whether Brilacidin has anti-fungal, anti-biofilm, and chemoattraction characteristics that AMPs are known to exhibit?
Defensin-based therapeutics (such as Brilacidin) have potential in treating the following cancers: esophageal cancer, lung cancer, bladder cancer, cervical cancer, oral cancer, skin carcinoma, tumor-induced immune evasion, renal cancer, prostate cancer, skin cancer and colorectal cancer.
Question 2: How quickly can the development of Brilacidin be administered intravenously as a monotherapy or as an adjuvant therapy since a vaccine would take 12+ months to develop?