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Parkinson's Disease

Is Angiogenesis a Treatment and Potential Cure?

Zhittya Genesis Medicine is developing a drug, fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF-1), to possibly treat Parkinson's disease by growing new blood vessels in the brains of individuals suffering from Parkinson's. FGF-1 is a potent stimulator of angiogenesis (the growth of new blood vessels) and is capable of growing these new blood vessels in ischemic areas of the body, including the brain. Research has indicated that a lack of blood perfusion to dopamine producing neurons located in the substantia nigra region of the brain lead to a lack of dopamine and the classic symptoms of Parkinson's.

In the past, FGF-1 has been able to grow new blood vessels in the human body. In a US FDA Phase IIA clinical trial, conducted at the University of Cincinnati, our drug was able to grow new blood vessels in the hearts of individuals with coronary artery disease, improving many of their symptoms.

 

FGF-1 has also shown excellent efficacy in treating Parkinson's disease in Cynomolgus monkey models. After being injected with a neurotoxin that selectively destroys dopamine-producing neurons, the two groups of monkeys came down with the classic symptoms of Parkinson's disease. After one group was administered FGF-1 and the other a placebo dose, the FGF-1 administered monkeys not only improved their motor scores almost to normal, but also increased their dopamine production and decreased their build up of alpha-synuclein plaque.

 

Beyond the monkey-model, Zhittya has begun medical research studies into the possible use of FGF-1 in humans suffering with Parkinson's disease. In June 2022, Zhittya conducted a safety study of intranasally administered FGF-1, which included Parkinson's sufferers. Beyond demonstrating that intranasally delivered FGF-1 was safe and well-tolerated by all in the safety study, it improved the motor skills of those suffering with Parkinson's disease. Zhittya conducted additional studies in Parkinson's in August 2022 and is looking to conduct future studies to determine if FGF-1 can improve symptoms of Parkinson's disease as it did for monkeys.

Zhittya Genesis Medicine has prepared multiple videos, listed below, discussing our possible treatment for Parkinson's disease. As mentioned above, Zhittya Genesis Medicine's most recent medical research study in humans in May 2022 not only demonstrated that FGF-1 was safe when delivered intranasally, but hinted at signs of efficacy, even showing a 50% improvement in motor scores following a month-long dosing period. Zhittya Genesis Medicine is currently conducting additional medical research studies and clinical trials in an effort to determine if FGF-1 is a possible remedy for the root cause of Parkinson's disease: diminished blood flow, leading to dysfunctional dopamine producing neurons.

This computer rendering demonstrates what we believe FGF-1 is doing in the brains of patients with Parkinson's disease. FGF-1 promotes the cellular division of blood vessel cells in ischemic areas, leading to a controlled growth of blood vessels to replenish blood flow to the most desperate areas. FGF-1 is already native to your body, and is used consistently when your body needs to regrow blood vessels, for example, after a cut, scrape, or bruise. FGF-1 is well-tolerated by the human body and, to date, at our dosing levels, no negative side effects have been observed by our drug.

US FDA Phase 2A Heart.png

In earlier studies, as shown in the figure above, FGF-1 was utilized to grow new blood vessels in the hearts of individuals suffering from coronary artery disease. This US FDA Phase IIA clinical trial demonstrated the efficacy of FGF-1 in growing blood vessels in ischemic areas of the heart. The study demonstrated that patients had decreased angina pain and were able to use a treadmill for longer periods of time. Zhittya believes that this same drug that proved efficacious in the heart, could treat Parkinson's disease, where recent evidence has demonstrated that a lack of blood flow to parts of the brain could be the initiating cause of Parkinson's disease.

After being injected with a neurotoxin, MPTP, Cynomolgus monkeys developed the classical symptoms of Parkinson's disease such as reduced motor scores, decreased dopamine production as well as a build up of alpha-synuclein plaque. After 9 months, as shown in the slide-deck above, these monkeys' motor scores had severely decreased. At month 10, one group of monkeys was treated with FGF-1 and another group of monkeys was treated with a placebo drug. Following an additional 7 months, the motor scores of those Parkinson's-diseased monkeys treated with FGF-1 had almost returned to normal and those in the placebo group had continued to worsen. Following this study, the brains of these monkeys were studied which had revealed that the FGF-1 dosed monkeys had not only increased their dopamine production compared to the placebo dosed monkeys, but had also decreased the presence of alpha-synuclein plaque. Building on this monkey model, Zhittya believes that FGF-1 could prove beneficial for humans who suffer from Parkinson's disease, by being able to reestablish blood flow to the dopamine producing parts of the brain, thereby increasing dopamine production and decreasing the build-up of synuclein aggregates. 

Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson's Disease
Parkinson's Disease Sufferers- 6 Month-Follow-Up Review- Zhittya Genesis Medicine
01:04:39
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Parkinson's Disease Sufferers- 6 Month-Follow-Up Review- Zhittya Genesis Medicine

Parkinson's Disease Sufferers Improve by 50%- Zhittya's Medical Research Study
01:11:32
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Parkinson's Disease Sufferers Improve by 50%- Zhittya's Medical Research Study

Parkinson's Standing Improvements?- Patient 2
00:34
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Parkinson's Standing Improvements?- Patient 2

Parkinson's Drug Improves Motor Scores?- Patient 2
00:25
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Parkinson's Drug Improves Motor Scores?- Patient 2

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