All-cause mortality risk-adjusted to account for atherosclerosis as the underlying cause of death.
Data from WHO and US Dept of HHS, 2017.
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All-cause mortality risk-adjusted to account for atherosclerosis as the underlying cause of death.
Data from WHO and US Dept of HHS, 2017.
Traditional drugs & animal models typically apply interventions far “upstream” (e.g., reduce the number of harmless circulating LDL particles, most of which will never be oxidized and contribute to atherosclerosis).
Cyclodextrins have countless industrial and pharmaceutical applications. Hydroxypropyl Beta Cyclodextrin is currently in clinical trials.
Underdog cyclodextrin derivatives have been designed to target only 7-ketocholesterol, the damaged cholesterol that actually drives atherosclerotic disease.
Our iterative process combines bench chemistry and computational modeling to design, test, and evaluate the potential efficacy of engineered cyclodextrins as candidate active pharmaceutical ingredients. We use molecular dynamics simulations to provide clear visuals demonstrating how various cyclodextrins form complexes with 7KC.
Native beta cyclodextrin complexes well with 7KC, but it is relatively toxic to cells.
Hydroxypropyl beta cyclodextrin is extremely inert, but it needs a higher affinity for 7KC to be effective.
These simulations are then put to the test in the lab setting.
Underdog has now created proprietary, custom-engineered, nontoxic cyclodextrins designed to achieve high affinity and high specificity for the 7KC target.
