Therapeutic Areas
Autoimmune disease
Normally the immune system provides a powerful defence mechanism against
dangerous pathogens while sparing injury to host tissue. Under certain circumstances,
however, this delicate balance becomes disturbed, resulting in autoimmune
or chronic inflammatory disease. These conditions, which include rheumatoid
arthritis, multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, psoriasis, inflammatory
bowel disease and lupus, have a staggering impact on public health. In the
United States alone, autoimmune diseases are estimated to affect 14 - 22
million people (5 - 8% of the population), about twice as many as cancer,
with the cost of treatment estimated at greater than $100 billion annually.
TTI is taking several parallel approaches to the treatment of autoimmune
diseases. Our lead product, CD200Fc, has remarkable therapeutic effects
in a number of animal models of disease. We are also developing inhibitors
of FcgRIIa, an activating receptor that plays a major role in antibody-mediated
inflammation.
Cancer
Cancer remains one of the most serious public health issues. In the US, cancer is responsible for 23%
of all deaths (more than 500,000 per year), making it the second leading
killer behind heart disease. The total economic burden of this disease is
estimated to be $143 billion annually. Although the development of new therapeutics
has led to modest increases in patient survival, there is clearly a pressing
medical need for additional treatment strategies.
TTI’s novel approach to cancer treatment is
based on blocking the activity of CD200, an important immunoregulatory
molecule that tumors may exploit to limit strong anti-cancer immune responses.
By neutralizing this pathway, tumor-specific immune responses can be boosted,
resulting in better disease control.
Transplantation
In the U.S.,
almost 30,000 solid organ transplants are performed every year. In
the majority of transplant recipients, the immune system will recognize
the new organ as foreign and consequently mount an anti-graft response within
the first 6 months. Powerful immunosuppressive drugs must be used
to prevent the destruction and failure of the grafted organ. The market
for immunosuppressive drugs used in organ transplantation is expected to
reach approximately $2.5 billion in 2008. Although effective in many
cases, the majority of these drugs are non-selective in their action
and prolonged exposure often leads to kidney disease, transplant-associated
coronary artery disease, severe infections and even cancer.
TTI's approach to prevent transplant rejection is to selectively inhibit
the immune response to the transplanted organ by targeting the important
CD200:CD200R immunoregulatory pathway.
Necrotizing Enterocolitis
Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a devasting intestinal disorder that occurs predominantly in premature infants. With a mortality rate of approximately 30%, it is one of the leading causes of death in this patient group. There are no effective treatments for NEC, and surviving patients often require prolonged hospitalization and can experience severe complications, such as short-bowel syndrome. Although the causes of NEC are unknown, gut immaturity and inflammation are recognized as key components.
TTI is developing a small gastrointestinal growth factor (TTI-1612) that has shown remarkable efficacy in pre-clinical animal models of NEC and other intestinal disorders.
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