ImmuneWorks, Inc has started its phase-I clinical trial in patients suffering from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a serious lung disease. The clinical trial will move the biotech company one step closer to commercialization of its lead IPF treatment compound.

Eight leading academic research universities will conduct the IPF clinical trial: Indiana University, Medical University of South Carolina, Ohio State University, University of Alabama-Birmingham, University of Chicago, University of Louisville, University of Michigan and University of Vermont.

“We are pleased to move forward into clinical investigation of our purified Type V collagen solution in patients suffering from IPF,” said ImmuneWorks chief scientific officer David S Wilkes. “This clinical trial is important to study the safety of this naturally derived protein and investigate its ability to influence the ongoing immune response in IPF patients.”

ImmuneWorks has been conducting research and development of treatments for serious autoimmune lung diseases for the last five years. Over that time, the company attracted the attention of several key investors, raising nearly US$ 4 million. This funding came from groups including Indiana’s 21st Century Research & Technology Fund, BioCrossroads’ Indiana Seed Fund and the IU Medical Group Foundation.

IPF is a devastating lung disease that is progressive and generally fatal. An estimated 128,000 persons in the United States suffer from IPF, with 48,000 new persons diagnosed annually and 40,000 patients dying from the disease each year (source: Coalition for Pulmonary Fibrosis). The number of deaths annually is the same as breast cancer and greater than other cancers such as multiple myeloma. Currently no FDA-approved medicines exist for IPF in the United States or Europe.

ImmuneWorks was formed in 2006 to develop and commercialize treatments for serious autoimmune diseases of the lung.