Below find a glossary of definitions for commonly used phrases throughout the Abcentra website:
Aortic Valve Stenosis
Aortic valve stenosis is the most common form of valve disease, affecting more than one million patients in North America each year. is the disease is characterized by the narrowing of the exit of the heart’s left ventricle, which reduces or blocks blood flow into the main artery and to the rest of the body. When the blood flow through the aortic valve is reduced or blocked, the heart needs to work harder to pump blood. Eventually, this extra work limits the amount of blood it can pump, and this can cause symptoms as well as possibly weaken the heart muscle. Untreated, this valve disease can lead to serious heart problems, like heart failure, and death.
Aortic Valve Stenosis Treatments
There are currently approved medical treatments for aortic valve stenosis. Patients with severe aortic valve stenosis are treated surgically. Abcentra is developing monoclonal antibodies to treat aortic valve stenosis in patients with elevated lipoprotein(a) by inhibiting inflammatory signaling from oxidized lipids and preventing the assembly of lipoprotein(a).
ApolipoproteinB-100
Also called apoB-100 and apoB, apolipropteinB-100 is the protein component of the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) molecule. It is also present in the lipoprotein(a) molecule.
Atherosclerosis
Atherosclerosis is a disease of the arteries that is characterized is the build-up of plaque on the inner arterial wall. It is a hallmark of cardiovascular disease. Atherosclerosis occurs when substances such as fats, cholesterol, and immune cells build up on a patient’s artery walls, restricting blood flow to vital organs and tissues. In rheumatological patients, atherosclerosis occurs prematurely and develops aggressively, leading to a markedly higher risk of heart attack at a younger age; this is called ‘accelerated atherosclerosis.’
Cardiovascular Disease
Cardiovascular disease (CVD), also commonly referred to as heart disease, refers to a number of conditions, many of which are related to a process called atherosclerosis. The major conditions that comprise CVD are heart attack, stroke, arrhythmia, and heart valve diseases. Responsible for over 840,400 deaths and nearly 1.8 million cases of heart attack and stroke each year, cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in the United States.
Chronic Inflammation
Chronic inflammation is inflammation that persists over prolonged periods of time. It can cause significant damage to cells and tissue and is a primary contributor to many fatal and life-threatening diseases such as cancers, rheumatoid arthritis, and atherosclerosis. Inflammation often begins as an acute response to a potentially harmful stimuli, but can morph into a lingering state that persists for months or years when the immune system’s response fails to eliminate the problem or responds inappropriately to self- antigens. While acute inflammation is a natural and important biological process for fighting infections and cancers, chronic inflammation can cause several serious diseases and conditions that can lead to a low quality of life.
Coronary Artery Disease
Coronary artery disease (CAD), also called coronary heart disease (CHD), is characterized by narrowing of the coronary arteries caused by atherosclerosis. The coronary arteries supply oxygen and blood to the heart. CAD can lead to heart attack. CAD is the most common type of heart disease and the leading cause of death worldwide.
Coronary artery disease treatments
Long-term prevention and treatment options for ischemic coronary artery disease (CAD), the most common form of CVD, include medication to control risk factors, such as low-density lipoprotein (LDL), blood pressure and platelets. Severe cases can require surgical interventions such a coronary artery bypass graft (aka “CABG” or “bypass surgery”) or percutaneous coronary intervention (aka “PCI” or a “stent”). These treatments are often inadequate, only partially lowering the risk of serious cardiovascular events, like heart attack. Better options are needed for the millions of high-risk patients worldwide who live with CAD.
Fat Attenuation Index (FAI)
Fat Attenuation Index (FAI) is a biosensor for coronary inflammation that can predict cardiovascular death. Coronary inflammation causes changes in the size and composition of perivascular adipose tissue surrounding the coronary arteries, even before plaques are visible on CCTA. These changes are quantified as the Fat Attenuation index (FAI), a precision imaging biomarker of coronary inflammation and shown as a 3D color map co-registered with the CCTA. High FAI is a predictor of cardiac mortality including myocardial infarction, suggesting it has value as a surrogate endpoint for the effect of anti-inflammatory treatment on cardiac outcomes.
Inflammation
Inflammation is the biological response to stimuli that the immune system interprets to be potentially harmful. it tends to have a negative connotation, but inflammation is a defense mechanism that is important to fighting infection and clearing damaged cells. When inflammation becomes chronically activated, it can lead to serious problems and diseases.
Inflammation Treatments
Inflammation from serious inflammatory diseases, like psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis and irritable bowel syndrome (IBD) is often treated with immunomodulating drugs (or “immunomodulators”). Immunomodulators can reduce inflammation by shutting down specific immune system pathways. However, they often are suboptimal in terms of efficacy and risks of serious adverse events.
Aiming to address the shortcomings of current treatment options, Abcentra is leveraging cutting-edge science to develop a portfolio of novel antibody therapeutics for serious inflammatory diseases.
Inflammatory diseases
Inflammatory diseases include a vast array of disorders and conditions that are characterized by inflammation. Examples include rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease, cancer and heart disease.
Lipoprotein(a)
Lipoprotein(a) is a lipoprotein that contains a molecule of apoB-100 and a protein called apolipoprotein(a). Genetic and epidemiologic studies have identified lipoprotein(a) as a risk factor for atherosclerosis and related diseases, such as coronary heart disease and stroke. It has also been causally linked to severe and premature aortic valve disease.
Low density lipoprotein
One of the five major groups of lipoproteins, which transports lipids to tissue. It is characterized by containing a molecule of apolipoproteinB-100 (ApoB-100). When oxidized it can become a potent inflammatory mediator.
Orticumab
Our clinical-stage lead candidate, Orticumab, is being developed to treat inflammatory diseases. It is the first fully human antibody that targets a specific epitope on apolipoproteinB-100, which is the protein component of LDL. It acts as a modulator of inflammatory responses from oxidized LDL. Orticumab has also been known as BI-204 and MLDL1278a.
Oxidized LDL
In certain environments, low density lipoprotein (LDL) can become oxidized. Oxidized LDL, or oxLDL, is recognized is a potent inflammatory mediator. It is implicated in serious diseases and conditions such as atherosclerosis, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, and cancer.
Perivascular Adipose Tissue (PVAT)
Perivascular adipose tissue is a local deposit of adipose tissue surrounding the vasculature. Perivascular adipose tissue is present throughout the body and has been shown to have a local effect on blood vessels. The influence of perivascular adipose tissue on the vasculature changes with increasing adiposity. Human vessels exert paracrine effects on the surrounding PVAT, affecting local intracellular lipid accumulation in preadipocytes, which can be monitored using a CT imaging approach.
Plaque psoriasis
Plaque psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease that affects 3 percent of the population and is associated with serious commodities such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease. Linked to overactive immune cells in the skin, psoriasis can be treated with immunomodulating therapies that reduce inflammation. These therapies can have serious side effects, however. There is a need for more targeted treatment options with minimal side effects.
Psoriasis
Psoriasis is a chronic autoimmune condition that causes the rapid buildup of skin cells. This buildup of cells causes scaling on the skin’s surface. Inflammation and redness around the scales is fairly common.
Psoriasis treatments
Depending on its severity, psoriasis may be treated with topicals, phototherapy, and/or systemic treatments. Abcentra is developing a new biologic for psoriasis that targets inflammatory responses specifically from oxidized lipoproteins.
