Problem
Sepsis is a potentially life-threatening condition that is triggered by an infection or injury and is the result of an overwhelming inflammatory host response to bacterial infection. Despite intense scientific efforts, availability of antibacterial therapies, and improved immunotherapies, sepsis remains a serious clinical problem and there remains a need to improve the efficacy of sepsis treatments. Sepsis illness ranges from mild to severe, and while mild cases have a high rate of recovery, severe cases can lead to organ failure, gangrene, and cognitive impairment. In addition, 50% of sepsis survivors suffer from post-sepsis syndrome, a condition that involves a variety of physical, psychological and emotional problems. The pathology of sepsis is extremely challenging to fight with pharmaceuticals. The underlying infection may be resistant to antibiotics, and organ damage that happens can be extremely difficult to halt with drugs. For these reasons, new and more effective treatments for sepsis are needed.
Solution
Researchers working at CU Boulder and Immodulon Therapeutics Limited have discovered novel, mycobacterially-derived lipid compounds that have potent anti-inflammatory effects. These compounds can be extracted from a culture of bacterial cells containing the lipid of interest or chemically synthesized. Data collected by researchers indicate that these compounds could be useful in the treatment and prevention of sepsis and post-sepsis syndrome, as well as management of symptoms associated with the disease as they target the infection underlying sepsis and the disease pathology.
Market Application
According to National Institute of General Medical Sciences, severe sepsis strikes more than a million Americans every year, and 15 to 30 percent of those people die. The number of sepsis cases per year has also been on the rise in the United States. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality lists sepsis as the most expensive condition treated in U.S. hospitals, costing nearly $24 billion in 2013. In addition, people with sepsis are two to three times more likely to be readmitted to the hospital as people with many other conditions, including heart failure, pneumonia, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
