The company has signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement
Dr. Anil B. Mukherjee and his colleagues at NICHD, NIH explored the relationship
of UG and kidney disease by comparing kidney function in mice with normal
levels of UG and mice that had been genetically engineered to be UG-deficient.
The "knockout," or UG-deficient mice, developed blockages in their kidneys,
which inhibited the kidney's ability to filter blood and remove impurities.
The blockages were created by deposits of fibronectin, another protein which
normally circulates in the blood and is a major component in the formation of
blood clots and the wound healing process. In the control group of mice, UG
bound to fibronectin, preventing fibronectin from accumulating and blocking
kidney function.
But in the "knockout" mice, the absence of UG resulted in deposits of
fibronectin and led to fibrosis in the kidneys, causing lethal renal failure.
These findings indicate that UG may play a similar role in controlling fibroses
in the human kidneys, as well as in other human organs.
Neonatal BPD
Severely premature infants lack adequate amounts of UG, because the protein
begins to appear in significant concentrations in the fetal lung only during the
last few weeks of gestation. The UG deficiency results in inflammation and
fibrosis of lung tissue, which inhibits respiration.
About 90,000 newborn infants in the United States are at risk for neonatal BPD
annually, of whom about 13,000 will develop the condition, and 4,700 will die.
Many of the surviving infants will suffer lifelong disability. The cost of acute
treatment for neonatal BPD is extremely high -- about $200,000 per patient,
according to a recent study-- and the need for a preventive treatment is widely
recognized.
ClaraGen's focus on uteroglobin
Uteroglobin (UG), or CC10, is a protein which has a number of biological
functions in the human body. In the lungs, UG plays an important role in
controlling both inflammation and the formation of damaging fibrous tissue. It
also appears to play a similar role outside the lungs, not only controlling
inflammation, but also regulating processes that maintain a normal and healthy
state within other organs
ClaraGen Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focusing on the commercialization
of UG in inflammatory and fibrotic human diseases. The company has identified a
number of medical conditions in which human UG is present in inadequate amounts
or is absent altogether. ClaraGen is developing techniques for producing a
genetically-engineered form of UG that would replenish this needed human
protein.
ClaraGen is initially pursuing research to determine how recombinant human UG
can be used in the prevention of neonatal BPD. The company plans to explore
other applications for recombinant UG.
ClaraGen was founded in 1996 and is based in College Park, Maryland. Mark Zimmer
ClaraGen, Inc.
President
335 Paint Branch Rd.
College Park, MD 20742
(301) 314-7805
News Release
Claragen Explores How Uteroglobin Can Prevent Neonatal Lung Disease
Peer-Reviewed Publication
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- June 2, 1997 -- ClaraGen Inc. a biopharmaceutical company
founded in 1996, is conducting research focusing on uteroglobin (UG), a human
protein which plays an important role in preventing inflammatory and fibrotic diseases.