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NIH Researcher Reports TB4 Accelerates Healing of Eye and Skin Injuries
NEW YORK--Scientists and physicians from the United States and Europe reported advances in research on Thymosin Beta 4 (TB4), an experimental wound healing drug, and its potential use in the fields of ophthalmology and dermatology.
The scientific papers were presented at the 7th International Congress of Allergy and Immunology held in New York. The four-day meeting highlighted novel approaches to the management of disease.
Several plenary presentations were made on TB4, a 43-amino acid peptide being developed by RegeneRx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., Bethesda, Md., and the subject of a collaboration between RegeneRx and the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Dr. Hynda Kleinman, Director of the Laboratory for Developmental Biology at the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) in Bethesda, Md., reported that, "TB4 shows markedly accelerated wound healing in the eye by increasing epithelial migration and reducing inflammation, both of which are important to more rapid and complete healing. TB4 could become a very important new compound for the treatment of wound repair related to trauma, surgery, or chronic disease."
The research was conducted by Dr. Kleinman and her colleagues at the NIDCR in collaboration with Dr. Gabriel Sosne of the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Mich.
Other researchers from The George Washington University, The University of Pennsylvania, and University Erlangen-Nuremberg in Germany separately reported on additional chemical and biological properties of TB4. They also reported that the drug reduces the severity of septic shock and death in rodents, and accelerates wound healing and angiogenesis both in vitro and in vivo.
RegeneRx is developing products to treat a variety of human diseases. For the past several years researchers at the company and the NIH have been exploring the role of TB4 in the regeneration, remodeling, and healing of chronic wounds caused by trauma, surgery, or disease.
For Your Information:
- J.J. Finkelstein, RegeneRX Biopharmaceuticals, 3 Bethesda Metro Center, Suite 700 Bethesda, MD 20814; (301) 961-1992; Fax (301) 961-1991 Web site: www.regenerx.com, e-mail: jjfnk@RegeneRX.com.