BioCentury
ARTICLE | Distillery Therapeutics

Therapeutics: Caspase-1 (CASP1)

January 15, 2015 8:00 AM UTC

Cell-based and mouse studies suggest that nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) used to treat HIV infections could be repurposed to treat dry AMD. In a mouse model of dry AMD, a series of NRTIs including generic stavudine and Retrovir zidovudine decreased CASP1-mediated degeneration of retinal pigment epithelium compared with vehicle. In retinal pigment epithelial cells, the NRTIs decreased activation of CASP1 compared with vehicle. Ongoing work includes planning a multi-center clinical trial of the oral NRTI lamivudine in the dry form of AMD to begin in 2015.

GlaxoSmithKline plc and Roche market Retrovir zidovudine to treat HIV/AIDS...