Could the African mamba snake help cure certain cardio-renal pathologies? This is the ambition of the start-up V4Cure, created at the beginning of March 2023 and having just emerged from the Paris Biotech Santé incubator. “There are some very potent molecules in snake venom that can be dangerous, but others have value if modified to make medicine.sums up Sonia Escaich, director of the young company present at the Hello Tomorrow trade show organized in Paris on March 9 and 10. Its objective: to achieve market launch in 2030.
The start-up takes advantage of a CEA patent, the result of ten years of research work. The treatment is aimed in particular at two pathologies, hyponatremia (lack of sodium in the blood) and polycystic kidney disease (presence of cysts in the kidneys). At the heart of the future treatment: the V4C-232 peptide, present in the venom of the green mamba. “I discovered it by screening a therapeutic target, i.e. a receptor associated with a pathologyexplains Nicolas Gilles, researcher at the CEA and specialist in snake venom. Once a receptor has been identified, I sift through venoms to find a molecule that acts on this receptor, this is called bioguiding. The objective is then to improve it to make it a real therapeutic candidate.»
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Venoms, such good candidates for drugs
These two pathologies, which can lead to serious complications, are so far incurable. V4Cure ensures that its injectable treatment will address a market valued at around 1 billion euros. If the CEA has validated preclinical studies demonstrating the effectiveness of the V4C-232 peptide, the start-up plans to invest 8 million euros over the next two years to finance the first phase of clinical trials. “But an amount of 20 million euros will be necessary to be able to carry out clinical trials in humans.», figure Sonia Escaich.
The start-up is banking on the synthetic production of the V4C-232 peptide via a subcontractor, then on the manufacture of its treatment by a large pharmaceutical group. The use of animal venoms to design a treatment is not a first in the pharmaceutical world. This is particularly the case of Byetta, used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes, whose active molecule comes from the saliva of the monitor lizard. As for Prialt, used in the treatment of refractory chronic pain, it originates from the marine cone, a gastropod. V4Cure’s treatment might follow this line. We understand better why the snake, present on the emblem of pharmacies, is the symbol of healing…
Anaïs Mata
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