Mucus unplugged

Not ready for prime time

Dr. Dickey and colleagues are now working to translate the therapy into a form that can be used in humans, most likely as an aerosol that could be used for acute treatment of patients with mucus plugging from asthma and COPD, and also as a therapy for patients with chronic disease.

“In the chronic situation, what we would hope to do is identify patients with muco-obstructive lung disease – asthma, COPD, cystic fibrosis – who have airway mucus obstruction and then use the inhaled peptide on a regular basis as one part of a program to try to prevent this chronic mucus occlusion,” Dr. Dickey said.

As Dr. Gitlin and Dr. Fahy wrote in their editorial, “by confirming that it is possible to block calcium-regulated mucin secretion, Lai and colleagues have shown the potential of such an approach as a new therapeutic strategy for lung illnesses associated with mucus pathology, including diseases such as asthma and COPD, for which there is a large unmet medical need.”

The study by Dr. Dickey and colleagues was supported by grants from the German Research Foundation, National Institutes of Health and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Dr. Dickey disclosed consulting for Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Kim disclosed personal fees from Medscape and others. Dr. Evans reported no relevant disclosures. Dr. Fahy and Dr. Gitlin are named inventors on patents for mucolytic drugs, and shareholders in Aer Therapeutics.