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Biotech Showcase™: GeNeuro homes in on ancestral viral genes to treat autoimmune diseases
Focusing on an idea that many autoimmune diseases are caused by proteins from viral genes that are now embedded in human DNA, Swiss biotech GeNeuro is using the approach to tackle diseases such as multiple sclerosis and type 1 diabetes. Indeed, 8% of the human genome comes from genes left there by infections that affected our ancestors. Speaking at the 2018 Biotech Showcase, GeNeuro co-founder and CEO Jesús Martin-Garcia explained to Scrip how the company is advancing therapeutic candidates designed to neutralize the causal factors encoded by human endogenous retroviruses that lead to autoimmune diseases. The company’s lead programs focusing multiple sclerosis, and partnered with Servier, and type 1 diabetes are currently in Phase II trials.
Re: Geneuro
Posted: Sun Jun 24, 2018 2:23 am
by Leonard
watoo75 wrote:
Biotech Showcase™: GeNeuro homes in on ancestral viral genes to treat autoimmune diseases
Focusing on an idea that many autoimmune diseases are caused by proteins from viral genes that are now embedded in human DNA, Swiss biotech GeNeuro is using the approach to tackle diseases such as multiple sclerosis and type 1 diabetes. Indeed, 8% of the human genome comes from genes left there by infections that affected our ancestors. Speaking at the 2018 Biotech Showcase, GeNeuro co-founder and CEO Jesús Martin-Garcia explained to Scrip how the company is advancing therapeutic candidates designed to neutralize the causal factors encoded by human endogenous retroviruses that lead to autoimmune diseases. The company’s lead programs focusing multiple sclerosis, and partnered with Servier, and type 1 diabetes are currently in Phase II trials.
is it ancestral viral genes or is it more recent (40 - 100 M years old) EBV?
it would seem that EBV B cells are causal; they react with common epitopes on EBV infected cells when they come to expression.
this causes oxidative stress, successive mitochondrial failure, degeneration etc.
perhaps some epitopes from HERV have common characteristics with EBV.
in that case, old viral remains may add to our problem.