Validation and Development of Clinically Relevant Copper Complexes for the Treatment of Bacterial Infections

Nearly 70% of all drug candidates are not pursued for pharmaceutical development because they cannot be dissolved into solutions appropriate for human use. Cuprous Pharmaceuticals Inc. (CPI) recently discovered that some of these drugs could be dissolved in the presence of certain metal ions. Furthermore, a number of metal-drug complexes are more therapeutically active than their metalfree counterpart. Using its proprietary MetaplexTM technology, CPI can overcome these solubility issues by synthesizing metalcompound complexes inside liposomes (spherical structures 100 times smaller than a red blood cell). This nanotechnology will enable the pre-clinical and clinical evaluation of a new class of therapeutics that was previously impossible to investigate for many disease indications.
The proposed project involves characterization and optimization of approximately 30 different Metaplex formulations for treating tuberculosis and bacterial infections involving drug-resistant superbugs. The effectiveness of these formulations will be tested against clinically-relevant strains of superbugs. TO BE CONT’D

Faculty Supervisor:

Chris Orvig

Student:

Ada Leung

Partner:

Cuprous Pharmaceuticals Inc

Discipline:

Chemistry

Sector:

Nanotechnologies

University:

Program: