Extracellular Vesicle Depleted Blood Fractions via Plasma Exchange
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing therapies struggle to consistently and reproducibly reduce extracellular vesicle loads in patients, contributing to the spread of disease-associated factors and pathologies due to structural non-homogeneity in vesicles and limited understanding of molecular mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
Plasma exchange is used to deplete extracellular vesicles from patient blood without specific binding agents, resulting in a greater than 90% reduction of disease-causing vesicles, particularly for conditions like neurodegenerative diseases, using methods such as plasmapheresis to alter blood fractions and administer depleted blood back to patients.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional pharmaceutical targeting methods are used to reduce extracellular vesicle loads, then specific binding agents can target disease-associated vesicles, but the structural non-homogeneity of vesicles and limited understanding of packaging mechanisms make consistent and reproducible reduction difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies plasma exchange to extract and remove extracellular vesicles from patient plasma without requiring specific binding agents. This extraction approach bypasses the complexity of targeting individual vesicle types by removing the entire plasma fraction containing all extracellular vesicles, thereby achieving consistent and reproducible reduction of disease-associated vesicle loads
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses plasma exchange as an intermediary process to indirectly target and remove extracellular vesicles. Instead of directly binding to specific vesicle components, the plasma exchange procedure serves as a mediator that removes the plasma fraction containing extracellular vesicles, simplifying the therapeutic approach while maintaining reliability
2Reliability
If specific binding agents are used to target extracellular vesicles, then disease-associated cargos can be selectively removed, but expensive binding agents are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts extracellular vesicles from plasma through plasma exchange without using any binding agents. This extraction method eliminates the need for expensive antibodies or other molecular targets, achieving cost-effective removal of disease-associated vesicles while maintaining therapeutic reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces expensive, complex binding agents with a simpler, more affordable plasma exchange procedure. The disposable nature of the plasma exchange process avoids the need for costly, specialized reagents while achieving the desired therapeutic effect of reducing extracellular vesicle loads
3Productivity
If plasma exchange is used to remove extracellular vesicles without binding agents, then extracellular vesicle loads are reduced by greater than 90%, but the mechanism does not specifically target particular vesicle types
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts all extracellular vesicles from plasma through plasma exchange, achieving high removal efficiency (>90%) without requiring specific targeting. This bulk extraction approach prioritizes productivity over specificity, recognizing that the non-homogeneous nature of extracellular vesicles makes selective targeting unnecessarily complex
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of trying to selectively keep beneficial vesicles while removing harmful ones, the patent inverts the approach by removing all extracellular vesicles and allowing the body to naturally replenish with healthy vesicles. This inversion simplifies the mechanism while maintaining therapeutic effectiveness
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach effectively reduces extracellular vesicle loads, potentially down-regulating pathologies by circumventing the need for expensive binding agents and providing a reliable treatment for conditions like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.
Implementation Method 1
plasma exchange is used to deplete extracellular vesicles from patient blood without specific binding agents, resulting in a greater than 90% reduction of disease-causing vesicles, particularly for conditions like neurodegenerative diseases, using methods such as plasmapheresis
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein are human blood fractions depleted of disease-causing extracellular vesicles, prepared by plasma exchange, that may find use in the treatment of a condition selected from the group consisting of neurodegenerative disease, autoimmune disease, cardiovascular disease, renal disease, and liver disease. In particular, the depleted blood fractions may find use in treating neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's Disease or Alzheimer's Disease.