RS BioTherapeutics has signed a research collaboration agreement with the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) to evaluate the former’s RSBT-001 for the prevention and treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF).
RSBT-001 is an investigational semi-synthetic cannabidiolic acid complex and the lead compound of the life sciences company. It is being developed to address exacerbation and stop the progression of acute as well as chronic pulmonary inflammation associated with respiratory diseases.
NIAAA is an institute within the US-government owned National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Its partnership with RS BioTherapeutics is intended to study the anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic potential of RSBT-001 in a preclinical pulmonary fibrosis model.
As per NIH, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is a chronic disease that impacts the tissue around the air sacs, or alveoli, in the lungs. This condition arises from the thickening and stiffening of lung tissue.
RS BioTherapeutics chief medical officer Michelle Shuffett said: “We are incredibly pleased to be working in a collaborative manner with NIH to evaluate our cornerstone compound, RSBT-001, in an animal pulmonary fibrosis model.
“IPF is a devastating, rare disease for which there is no known cure and while the multi-dimensional aspects of IPF will certainly test the capabilities of any agent, the significant impact IPF has on patients’ quality of life is a motivating force for us in exploring how RSBT-001 may affect this dreaded disease.”
According to the American Thoracic Society, four key endpoints which are lung histology, biochemical measurements, levels of profibrotic gene expression, and pulmonary function parameters are important for preclinical therapeutic evaluation of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis agents.
The life sciences company will assess the four endpoints as part of the collaborative research agreement with NIH. This protocol includes the assessment of RSBT-001 in a fibrosis-induced mouse model.
RS BioTherapeutics CEO Dean Hart said: “We are looking forward to understanding how RSBT-001 might play a role in the prevention and/or treatment of IPF, which impacts approximately 200,000 people in the United States with 50,000 new cases diagnosed each year.”
