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The drug candidate of EvolVeritas may provide protection against organ damage linked to transplantation, heart attack, and stroke
Summary: The unique lead molecule of the Hungarian pharmaceutical start-up company EvolVeritas, EVO24L, protects the body from tissue damage following oxygen deprivation. When a vessel is blocked, due to organ transplantation, heart attack, or stroke, the affected organ suffers from oxygen deprivation, and the cells display distress signals on their surface. Although blood supply can be restored surgically or by medication, this also initiates a process called reperfusion injury. The reason for this is that along with the blood providing oxygen and nutrients, immune proteins also arrive to the affected tissue recognizing the distress signals and triggering organ damage. EvolVeritas’ patented drug candidate prevents this by selectively inhibiting the harmful component of the immune response. EVO24L has proven effective in animal experiments. The breakthrough result was published in the prestigious journal PNAS.
EvolVeritas was founded by researchers-inventors from the Faculty of Natural Sciences at Eötvös Lorand University and the HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences. Under the leadership of Gábor Pál and Péter Gál, the company developed a unique drug candidate through the directed evolution of a human protein. The patented EVO24L prevents organ damage that inevitably occurs following oxygen deprivation. When an organ suffers from oxygen deprivation due to vessel blockage, such as in organ transplantation, heart attack, or stroke, the cells display distress signals on their surface. Although blood supply can be restored with thrombolytic medication or catheter treatment, with the fresh blood providing oxygen and nutrients, immune proteins that recognize the distress signals also arrive. One of them, the MASP-2 protease, initiates an avalanche-like
inflammation, leading to life-threatening organ damage.
EvolVeritas’new active molecule, EVO24L, prevents the development of inflammation and tissue damage by perfectly and permanently blocking the active site of MASP-2. The EVO24L drug candidate was tested by an Australian research group specializing in kidneys. They used an animal model specifically designed to study organ damage due to oxygen deprivation accompanying kidney transplantation. In their study, the kidney function of the placebo-treated individuals collapsed, while the kidney function and tissue of the EVO24L-treated animals remained intact. The breakthrough result was published in the prestigious journal of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States, PNAS.
EvolVeritas aims to develop a drug that will be widely applicable to prevent organ damage during and after organ transplantation, heart attack, and stroke. The spin off company, founded by the inventors from the joint research of ELTE FNS and HUN-REN RCNS, develops, through directed protein evolution, ultra-selective drug molecules that prevent or alleviate inflammation; SARS-CoV-2 and influenza virus infections and they are business discussions with the world’s leading pharmaceutical manufacturers and pharmaceutical investors for their further development towards drugs that address unmet medical needs.