Boston University is collaborating with MRC Technology, a technology transfer organization, to develop an anti-IL-16 antibody for use in treatment of inflammatory diseases and Ischemic Reperfusion Injury (IRI). A £577,000 Biomedical Catalyst Award grant to MRC Technology in 2012 will partly fund the project.

The new antibody therapy may have promise for a wide range of inflammatory diseases, including Crohn’s Disease, Lupus, asthma, as well as in IRI. IRI is a disease resulting from tissue damage and ensuing inflammatory response due to sudden loss of blood flow, which may occur during surgery or as a result of a blood clot. In the past, this has caused poor clinical outcomes and extended hospital stays for patients, and represents a large healthcare burden.

The antibody was originally developed by Boston University and has been humanized by MRC Technology. The MRC Technology team is now in the process of performing further engineering, as well as detailed x-ray diffraction structural analysis to better understand IL-16 functionality . In the meantime, Boston University is conducting both in vivo and in vitro experiments to confirm its validity.

Professor Justin Bryans, Director of Drug Discovery at MRC Technology said: “The general anti-inflammatory field is a large market, and IL-16 has the potential to cover a broad range of indications. We are very pleased that Boston University chose to work with MRC Technology.”

“MRC Technology has been very supportive and a real pleasure to work with. The group’s scientists were able to humanize the antibody very efficiently, and we are in the process of characterizing its efficacy in vitro and in vivo.” Commented Bill Cruikshank, Professor of Medicine at Boston University. “We look forward to collaborating further on this project.”