Serum Amyloid P Component (SAP)
Promedior is conducting leading edge research to identify and develop novel drugs for the treatment and prevention of fibrotic pathology by targeting specific cell populations that are involved in propagation of fibrosis and promoting those specific cell populations that amplify resolution of disease. Our lead program involves the development of recombinant human SAP for the treatment and prevention of fibrotic disease pathology based upon our proprietary discoveries into SAP’s unique roles in regulating the response of the innate immune system to injury. SAP is a member of the pentraxin family of proteins and falls into the subclass of short pentraxins made up of SAP and CRP. SAP is a highly conserved circulating plasma protein produced in the liver. SAP circulates at a relatively constant level and was initially characterized as a member of the innate immune system, where it was believed to contribute to opsonization and removal of bacteria, apoptotic cells and cellular debris. SAP couples recognition of these ligands to direct binding to Fc receptors and indirectly through activation of complement and subsequent binding to complement receptors on various cell types including monocytes. However, SAP’s precise role in human biology was previously unknown. Pioneering work conducted by Promedior’s scientific founders Richard Gomer and Darrell Pilling recently demonstrated that SAP is capable of inhibiting the differentiation of monocytes into fibrocytes in vitro, and block induction of fibrosis in vivo in a rodent model of lung fibrosis. These results suggest that SAP has anti-fibrotic properties mediated by its unique ability to regulate differentiation of monocyte populations. Subsequent studies conducted by Promedior and its collaborators have demonstrated the ability of SAP to block the development of fibrosis in several models of fibrotic disease, across all major tissue types, confirming its potential as a novel anti-fibrotic agent.