Project: Novel serpin for the treatment of hepatitis C

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), in Europe, the prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is particularly high and still rising. Current drugs in the market are not effective in almost half of patients, have strong side effects are not an option in most cases for patients co-infected with HIV.In this regard, the WHO described existing drugs for hepatitis C as "poorly tolerated, expensive and inevitably rendered ineffective in the long run by the development of drug-resistant mutant viruses or non-responsiveness". In response to the pressing need to improve therapeutic management and prognosis of hepatitis C patients, the SERPIN project aims at developing a promising, novel single-agent treatment for HCV infections. As opposed to a direct acting antiviral that targets viral proteins, the AB200 developed in this project targets host cell proteins involved in the antiviral response. It is therefore not subject to the risk of drug resistance, one of the major drawbacks of current antiviral drugs. Moreover, AB200 is expected to have a safe profile since it is based on a drug that has been on the market for 20 years for a different indication. Further, it will be administered in an immunoliposome to specifically target the infected cells, thus reducing the required dose and side effects and reaching a potential viral resorvoir (lymph nodes) not accesible for small inhibitor molecules. The regulatory pathway will also be reduced, accelerating its market launch and ensuring that its ultimate impact on patients’ survival and quality of life will be achieved.

Acronym	Serpin
Network	ETB-PRO
Call	7th call for proposals (Call 2012)

Project partner

Number	Name	Role	Country
	Applied Research using OMIC Sciences, S.L.	Coordinator	Spain
	FI		Finland