RESUMEN
Interview with Dr Eddie Blair, PhD, by Claire Raison (Commissioning Editor) Dr Eddie Blair is Managing Director of Integrated Medicines Ltd (Cambridge, UK), a company he formed in 2003 to enable precision medicine by combining diagnostic testing with new and existing medicines. Dr Blair has raised angel and private equity investments in excess of £12 million, has published over 40 primary peer-reviewed papers, including a series on companion diagnostic valuation, and is named inventor on at least 12 patents. Dr Blair is a member of the Editorial Advisory Board of Expert Review of Molecular Diagnostics and speaks to the Commissioning Editor here about entrepreneurship, obstacles and potential of introducing diagnostics innovations into routine clinical practice.
Asunto(s)
Industrias , Técnicas de Diagnóstico Molecular , Medicina de Precisión , Aprobación de Pruebas de Diagnóstico , Humanos , Invenciones , Técnicas de Diagnóstico Molecular/métodos , Técnicas de Diagnóstico Molecular/tendencias , Sistemas de Atención de Punto , Medicina de Precisión/métodos , Medicina de Precisión/tendencias , Sepsis/diagnóstico , Sepsis/etiologíaRESUMEN
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection causes severe lower respiratory diseases in infancy, early childhood and the elderly. RSV infections respond poorly to current therapies. Therefore, we initiated a search for novel drug targets by investigating the characteristics and identity of RSV adhesion receptors on mammalian cells. Soluble human lectins, complex polysaccharides and a low molecular selectin antagonist, TBC1269, were used to characterise and isolate the RSV receptor on a human epithelial cell line (Hep2 cells). The binding characteristics of the RSV receptor on Hep2 cells were similar to those reported for L-selectin. The carbohydrate-based selectin antagonists, fucoidan and TBC 1269, inhibit RSV infection both in vitro and in a mouse model of infection. Furthermore, we have isolated annexin II as a potential RSV receptor on Hep2 cells. The expression of annexin II was increased after RSV infection. Recombinant annexin II binds to RSV G-protein, heparin and plasminogen and the binding is inhibited by a selectin antagonist, TBC1269. These findings indicate that inhibitors of annexin II could have potential in treating RSV infection.