Thrombolytic Science, LLC

Paolo Sarmientos

Massimiliano Pagani

Victor Gurewich

John Noel Williams

Jian-ning Liu

It has now been discovered that certain mutant forms of pro-urokinase ('pro-UK'), such as so-called pro-UK mutant 'M5' (Lys&#x2192;His), perform in the manner of pro-UK in lysing &#x201c;bad&#x201d; blood clots (those clots that occlude blood vessels), while sparing hemostatic fibrin in the so-called &#x201c;good&#x201d; blood clots (those clots that seal wounds, e.g., after surgery or other tissue injury). Thus, these pro-UK mutants are excellent and safe thrombolytic agents. These advantages allow them to be used in a variety of new methods, devices, and compositions useful for thrombolysis and treating various cardiovascular disorders in clinical situations where administration of other known thrombolytic agents has been too risky or even contraindicated.

Methods, devices, and compositions for lysis of occlusive blood clots while sparing wound sealing clots

Methods are provided for producing non-glycosylated, single-chain and two-chain pro-urokinase (pro-UK) mutants. The methods include cultivating a specifictype B strain that has been transformed with specific plasmids carrying a cDNA sequence that encodes pro-UK mutants and carries specific promoter sequences. Products produced by the methods have medical use for thrombolysis performed while sparing hemostatic clots, e.g., for particular applications such as after a stroke or heart attack.

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Lecco, Italy

Paolo Sarmientos