According to an announcement from the Texas A&M Health Science Center (TAMHSC), Texas-based biotech Pulmotect has initiated clinical trials of PUL-042, an inhaled immune system stimulant. In 2012, the company received a grant of over $7 million for development of PUL-042, which was designed by researchers at TAMHSC and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.
TAMHSC Professor and Pulmotect co-founder Magnus Hook said, “The lungs are the point of entry for many viruses and bacteria. We hypothesized that activating the innate immune defense of the lungs might provide effective protection against a wide range of deadly pathogens. Based on our theory, we created a drug that stimulates the innate immune system, leading to rapid protection against many deadly lung infections.”
The drug was designed originally for the prevention of pneumonia in cancer patients, TAMHSC said, adding that “By bolstering the body’s first line of defense, PUL-042 shows promise in the areas of biodefense, as well as the prevention of seasonal and pandemic influenza and other respiratory infections, such as those commonly suffered by asthmatic patients.”
Read the TAMHSC press release.
