Cathepsin S Suppression for Dry and Wet AMD Treatment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current treatments for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) lack effective therapeutic agents for dry AMD, and existing therapies primarily target wet AMD, with cathepsin S's role in AMD remaining poorly understood.
Innovation Solution
A composition comprising substances that reduce cathepsin S expression or activity, such as siRNA, shRNA, miRNA, CRISPR/Cas, natural products, proteins, peptidomimetics, antibodies, exosomes, and compounds, is developed to inhibit inflammatory cytokines, complement activity, and angiogenesis, providing a potential treatment for both dry and wet AMD.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If current therapeutic agents are used for wet AMD, then wet AMD treatment is effective, but there are no effective treatments for dry AMD
Solution Approach 1:
The patent develops a therapeutic composition that can treat both dry AMD and wet AMD through a common mechanism (cathepsin S inhibition). The composition includes antibodies or inhibitors that target cathepsin S, which is involved in both dry AMD (through complement activation and inflammation) and wet AMD (through angiogenesis), providing universal treatment capability across AMD subtypes
2Object-generated harmful factors
If cathepsin S expression is suppressed, then inflammatory cytokines and complement activity are reduced, but the mechanism in AMD was previously unknown
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a dual approach where cathepsin S inhibition is used to reduce harmful factors (inflammatory cytokines, complement activity, angiogenesis), and simultaneously the therapeutic effect serves as feedback to confirm cathepsin S's pathogenic role in AMD. The treatment outcomes provide empirical evidence that validates the previously unknown mechanism, transforming loss of information into confirmed knowledge
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a method for prevention and treatment of age-related macular degeneration through the suppression of cathepsin S expression, and retinal pigment epithelial cells in which cathepsin S is knocked down can be usefully used as a target for preventing or treating dry and wet age-related macular degenerations, in that the expression level of inflammatory cytokines and complement activity are reduced even under oxidative stress conditions, and the retinal pigment epithelial cells are not only more effective in suppressing complement activity than NF-κB inhibitors, but also suppress intracellular neovascularization and tube formation.