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Dutch Saillant Therapeutics to develop generic virus-inhibiting therapy based on the activation of a cellular master regulator

Saillant Therapeutics
24 Aug 2020
Edward Carter
Publishing / Media

Industry news

Saillant Therapeutics has announced the swift advancement of an innovative generic virus-inhibiting treatment platform based on the activation of a cellular master regulator. While many parties worldwide are focused on developing vaccines and therapies based on antibodies, Saillant targets the complete elimination of viruses, which presages the outbreak of most upcoming virus variants. The lead compound induces adaptive functions in infected cells.

In fact, with the preclinical compound, the protein production of viruses in a host cell is halted, thus inhibiting virus replication. While new vaccines and antibody solutions are focused on the current COVID-19 virus, the newly found mode of action also works against most virus infections such as, for instance, Dengue, Zika and Ebola. The lung damage that follows with COVID-19 will also be prevented with this therapy.

Saillant is currently working on new formulations of the reference substance allowing the company to start clinical trials within one to two years. Preclinical studies are presently being conducted in collaboration with with renowned academic groups from the USA and with CROs.

The company originally started with a novel therapy for heart failure. Using a heart failure animal model, Saillant found out that the new treatment was able to restore heart function in failing hearts after two weeks of treatment. Treated hearts showed normal geometry with no sign of scar tissue (fibrosis). The same mechanism also plays a vital role in Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative disorders. Preclinical animal studies are currently underway for these indications.

Once heart cells and brain cells are under stress, there is only a limited period during which they can overcome this stress. If that fails, cell death occurs. The substance allows the anti-stress response to remain on for a longer time period in order for protein aggregates to be cleared from the cytosol and thus, no cell death occurs. As the cell survives and resumes its normal functionality, no fibrosis and therefore, no loss of functionality will occur.

Joost van Bree, CEO of Saillant Therapeutics, states: “I am very excited that we have uncovered a novel mechanism of action with a broad field of therapeutic applications. The emergence of new viruses into the human population for instance, threatens global health and economic stability, as observed with the COVID-19 outbreak. Although virus-specific vaccines and therapeutic antibodies are possible solutions to this problem, it takes significant time and capital - $2.8 to 3.7 billion per vaccine - to develop these interventions. Besides, the ongoing evolution of viruses may cause vaccines to become ineffective. Therefore, there is an urgent need for antiviral drug therapies, like the one Saillant is developing right now, that can be effectively applied for any viral disease, regardless of the virus type.”

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