Biotechs lay siege to misfolded proteins

A slate of biotech companies are devoting time and a considerable amount of money to study the ways in which misfolded proteins spur disease--and the therapies that can cure the ailments. The Boston Globe surveyed the scene and lists start-up Link Medicine, which raised $40 million last September, along with Proteostasis Therapeutics, Satori Pharmaceuticals, FoldRx and the well-established Vertex Pharmaceuticals.

"The whole protein-folding pathway has become an area of increased interest," Paul Negulescu, VP of research at Vertex, tells the Globe. "It's kind of an exploding area."

And each developer is following its own path. Heat-shock proteins, for example, help proteins fold properly when stressed, which could play a role in treating cancer or infections. Others are focused on the way that proteins are processed or transported in cells as they look for ways to block or eliminate misfolded proteins. And at some point the field could produce therapies that could be used before a disease like Alzheimer's even develops.

"By opening this new class of drugs," says P. Michael Conn, professor of pharmacology at Oregon Health and Science University, "we're targeting a series of diseases, (and) have the ability to help people who could not have previously been helped."

- read the story in the Boston Globe

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