Regenerx Biopharmaceuticals reported that researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (UTSW) in Dallas, Texas, published a new paper elaborating on the regenerative effects of TB4 on heart cells and blood vessel growth after a heart attack in a rodent model. According to UTSW, "The new findings in mice suggest that introducing TB4 systemically after a heart attack encourages new growth and repair of heart cells. The research findings indicate that the molecule affects developmental gene expression as early as 24 hours after systemic injection." The researchers also state that, "TB4 is the first known molecule capable of organ-wide activation of embryonic coronary developmental programme in the adult mammalian heart after systemic administration."

"This molecule has the potential to reprogram cells in the body to get them to do what you want them to do. Obviously, the clinical implications of this are enormous because of the potential to reverse damage inflicted on heart cells after a heart attack," commented Dr J Michael DiMaio, the senior author of the study and a cardiothoracic surgeon at UTSW.

The study was published April 10, online in the Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology and will appear in the journal in May. The work was supported by the American Heart Association, the National Institutes of Health, and the Ted Nash Long Life Foundation. Dr Deepak Srivastava, one of the authors of the study, is a member of RegeneRx's Scientific Advisory Board.

"We are pleased and impressed with the work conducted at UTSW, which expands upon the original work done in Dr. Srivastava's lab when he was at UTSW and published in the journal Nature. The fact that they found that TB4 caused new blood vessel growth and prevented the death of heart cells after injury is further confirmation of the previously reported biological activities of TB4 and its potential as a drug to treat patients with ischemic injuries to the heart," stated Dr Allan L Goldstein, discoverer of TB4, professor of biochemistry at The George Washington University Medical School and chief scientific advisor to RegeneRx. "Their discovery of molecular signals triggered by TB4 that are essential for the differentiation of stem cells and repair of heart tissue following a heart attack strongly support RegeneRx's clinical efforts in human subjects focused on cardioprotection and repair of the heart after ischemic damage."

The company is engaged in preliminary discussions with several pharmaceutical companies developing new therapies to prevent and repair acute heart damage. RegeneRx is focused on the discovery and development of novel peptides to accelerate tissue and organ repair. Currently, RegeneRx is developing three product candidates, RGN-137, RGN-259 and RGN-352 for dermal, ophthalmic, and cardiovascular tissue repair, respectively.