SYMBERIX, INC. — Department of Health and Human Services SBIR Phase I: DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Although non-pathogenic microbes that reside in our i
SYMBERIX, INC. — SBIR Phase I award from Department of Health and Human Services.
- Amount
- $225,000
- Agency
- Department of Health and Human Services · National Institutes of Health
- Program / Phase
- SBIR · Phase I
- Solicitation
- PA13-234
- NAICS
- —
- Place of performance
- NC
- Period
- —
Description
DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Although non-pathogenic microbes that reside in our intestines generally provide us with numerous health and digestive benefits, a specific microfloral activity is also responsible for the severe and sometimes deadly gastrointestinal (GI) side effects of certain chemotherapeutic and pain medications. The most dangerous and well-understood example of this commensal bacteria-induced drug toxicity is the chemotherapeutic agent irinotecan (also called CPT-11), which producesfrequent, intense, and dose-limiting diarrhea. The toxic effects of CPT-11 occur in the lower GI as a result of the sugar-metabolizing activity of a microbial enzyme, the bacterial ?-glucuronidase, which converts an inactive metabolite of CPT-11 into a reactivated cytotoxic form that damages the large intestine. The same mechanism of bacterial-mediated toxicity is responsible for ulcerations of the small intestine associated with the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). This projec