INFLAMACORE LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY — Department of Health and Human Services STTR Phase I: PROJECT SUMMARY Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a complex and devastating clinical condition m

Description

PROJECT SUMMARY Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a complex and devastating clinical condition mediated by proinflammatory cytokines that produce neuronal loss, axonal destruction, and demyelination during the secondary injury cascade. There are currently no proven therapies targeting posttraumatic inflammation that have been shown to have clinical value. We have previously shown that central nervous system (CNS) neurons express the NLRP1 inflammasome, a multiprotein complex that regulates the activation of caspase-1 and the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1 and IL-18 production after spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury and stroke. The adaptor protein apoptosis associated speck-like protein containing a caspase activating recruitment domain (ASC) is important for the recruitment of inflammasome proteins into the multiprotein complex that activates caspase-1. The long-term goal of this project is to develop an anti-inflammatory therapy that improves outcomes after SCI in humans. The objective of this applica