Affiris Commences Program for Hypertension Vaccine
Affiris is starting a development program for vaccination against hypertension. For this project the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG) is providing development funds of up to €1.2 million (US$1.6 million). Four of the current seven vaccine projects of the company are in the public domain.
As with the other vaccines under development – to treat Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and atherosclerosis – the vaccine will be based on the company's own Affitome technology. However, for the first time it is now being used against a human hormone. The reason for this announcement is the approval of significant development funds by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency, FFG.
The vaccine is targeting angiotensin II, a peptide hormone that can cause the narrowing of the blood vessels and thereby hypertension.
CSO Dr Frank Mattner states, "Although chronic hypertension can be treated with drugs, the patient has to be precisely attuned to them and must then take medication constantly which often doesn't work out. Our vaccine is intended to lower the burden of strictly following this medication dictate, thereby contributing to ensuring lasting success. Taking into account the long term aspect of how hypertension leads to the often fatal sequelae such as heart diseases, stroke and kidney problems in the long term, sustainability is key for treatment's success".
The idea of intervening in the body hormone regulation of blood pressure by means of a vaccine arose in recent years. Dr Walter Schmidt, CEO of Affiris explains, "In order to develop a vaccine that can reduce hypertension, it must be able to trigger a highly specific immune response. The blood pressuring – increasing angiotensin II and the blood pressure-reducing angiotensin 1-7 differ by only one amino acid, while the remainder of the structure is identical. Our Affitome technology allows us to adjust the immune response such that only angiotensin II is addressed. There was a similarly tricky problem in our first project, the Alzheimer's vaccine which we also solved successfully."
