Aussie spider venom spawns heart attack and stroke drug
Australian funnel-web spider venom has been used to create a drug that could save millions of lives by protecting patients’ hearts and brains during heart attacks and strokes.
University of Queensland researchers have begun clinical trials to evaluate the safety, tolerability and dosage of IB409, a new drug developed from a molecule in venom.
Molecular biologist Mark Smythe says the molecule could minimize heart and brain damage in patients, which would save lives and reduce the burden on the healthcare system.
“There is currently no way to protect your heart or brain during a heart attack or stroke,” he said Thursday.
“This molecule will make a huge difference for people dealing with heart attack or stroke.
“It has a huge social impact.”
Professor Smythe said clots formed during heart attacks and strokes reduce blood flow to patients’ hearts, causing significant tissue damage.
Current treatments help restore blood flow – IB409 is designed to protect or minimize heart damage during a heart attack or stroke.
“There is no drug on the market that does anything like this,” Prof Smythe said.
Preventing damage during a heart attack or stroke will allow patients to have healthier hearts and brains after medical events.
“This means your quality of life will be significantly better,” Prof Smythe said.
Researchers had previously recorded “extraordinarily promising” preclinical results with a protein called Hi1a, derived from the venom of a funnel-web spider from K’gari, formerly known as Fraser Island.
They believe Hi1a may reduce damage to the heart and brain during heart attacks and strokes by preventing cell death caused by lack of oxygen.
Brisbane-based biotechnology company Infensa Bioscience then developed Hi1a into a miniaturized molecule and the new drug is being tested.
The first phase of clinical trials is testing the safety of IB409 in healthy volunteers.
In the second phase, researchers will examine IB409’s ability to protect heart tissue during a heart attack.
Prof Smythe said if the drug was successful and approved for use, it would likely be administered by paramedics and medical doctors to provide early protection for patients suffering from heart attacks and strokes.
Prof Smythe is chief executive of Infensa and a UQ researcher.
Phase one of the trials was funded by a $17.8 million grant from the federal government and philanthropic support from the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute and St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney. Researchers from Infensa, UQ, VCCRI, Monash University, Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute, St Vincent’s Hospital, Alfred Hospital in Melbourne and Prince Charles Hospital in Brisbane contributed to the project.
