When will there be a cure for HPV?

Even if the American people may not agree on the politics, religion or benefits of a wall on the US-Mexico border, a factor that brings together nearly a quarter of the population: HPV. At present, 79 million Americans are infected with the virus. Human Papillome Virus (HPV), with another 14 million infected each year. HPV is this wonderful disease that causes either completely benign (but hilarious embarrbading) bad warts or life-threatening cervical cancer. More than 170 possible viruses can be labeled as HPV, while 99% of all cases of cervical cancer are caused by HPV. In addition, a range of other harmful cancers can result from HPV infection in areas generally used for adult entertainment. Every year in the United States, more than 13,000 women will be diagnosed with cervical cancer, and 4,000 of them will die. Compare that to the 400 unlucky guys who contract HPV-induced penile cancer every year, while the rest get it easy with bad warts.

How HPV works

Like other badually transmitted viruses, HPV is transmitted through badual contact of the bads and other mucous membranes. The virus lodges in the deepest layer of the epithelium and remains well in the host's epithelial cell DNA. Unlike other viruses that destroy cells inside by multiplying and bursting, these viruses spread when the bad epithelial cells detach and begin to die, releasing viral particles. The particles then infect other bodies. The virus spreads not only during badual intercourse, but also through contact with foot warts. If you are a hippie hanging on trees that likes to walk barefoot, just remember that these warts can degrade and release viral particles that someone else will detect. Not to mention that these viruses can survive for months at low temperatures without a host.

These guys live on your mess. Credit: The spin-off

Two types of high-risk HPV, HPV-16 and HPV-18, account for 70% of cervical cancer cases. These carcinogenic viruses modify the cellular genetic code and support the gas at the stage of cell division, forcing the epithelial cells to develop in a crazy way. The logic behind this step is that with more epithelial cells in the cervical region, more viruses are produced and can spread further. The virus codes for proteins that force cells to ignore any signs of slowing down, and the cells' DNA begins to turn into catastrophic disorder. At this point, the cells begin to turn into cancerous cancerous growths that eventually spread to vital organs and lymph nodes. Warts are formed from a similar process except that infected tissues never exceed more than a precancerous benign growth.

HPV and the challenges of treatment

Most cases of HPV are asymptomatic, which means that there is no revealing bad warts to rule out possible dates for Tinder. In addition to this, there is no approved way to detect HPV in a person who has no symptoms, allowing the disease to spread like wildfire without being noticed. Cervical cancer can take 15 to 20 years for a woman, and even less for 10 years if her host has a compromised immune system, such as HIV. Smoking and co-infection with other badually transmitted diseases, such as good old-fashioned herpes, are other risk factors that exacerbate the disease.

Progression of cervical cancer. Credit: Chinese University of Hong Kong

Companies like IncellDX, a San Francisco-based startup founded in 2009 with total funding of $ 9 million, works to improve HPV diagnoses. The company has developed the OncoTect 3Dx HPV system, which allows users to quantify certain strands of mRNA as a biomarker of cervical cancer from cervical cells, as well as to determine if there is any rapid proliferation of cancer cells. But the FDA has not yet approved the test, and so it's not clear whether a reliable test will be set up in the future to check an individual's HPV status.

At present, three HPV vaccines are available on the market: Cervarix, Gardasil and Gardasil 9. The problem is that the medical community continues to question the question of whether the benefits of these vaccines vaccines counterbalance their disadvantages, particularly in light of the suspension of Japanese law. their immunization program on vaccine safety concerns and other issues possibly motivated by political or financial considerations. To be effective, vaccines must be given to young girls before they are badually active because they can not prevent the symptoms of HPV after it has infected the host. And the vaccines will only work on the types of viruses they target. Since there are more than 170 viruses under the umbrella of HPV, these vaccines will not protect against all.

Market potential for HPV treatment

According to World Hthe health Oorganization (WHO), there are an estimated 311,000 cervical cancer deaths from HPV in women and 570,000 new cases reported in 2018. Cbetween for reisease Ccontrol (CDC) considers that the total economic cost of HPV is $ 4 billion every year in the United States only. In the same study, the authors suggest that anti-HPV vaccination in 12-year-old girls could potentially save as much as $ 21,779 per year of the life of the vaccinated. The rapid mathematics of backtracking proves to be a potential market for $ 12.4 billion once a year if there was a cure for HPV. Let's look at some immunotherapies and possible vaccines.

Potential cures for HPV

Founded in 1983, Inovio Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: INO) is a small biotechnology company based in Pennsylvania that develops vaccines to treat HPV-induced cervical cancer. $ 450 million. The lead candidate, VGX-3100, is currently undergoing a Phase 3 clinical trial that began in 2017 and leverages the patient's immune system to fight HPV and precancerous cell infections. VGX-3100 is administered in a unique process involving intramuscular injection and electroporation, a technique that sends electrical impulses to the injection site to increase absorption.

Inovio Pharmaceuticals product pipeline. Credit: Looking for alpha

Inovio recently concluded a licensing agreement with ApolloBio, a Chinese biomedical company, for a $ 23 million initial payment to further develop the treatment.

Founded in 2002, New Jersey-based Advaxis (NASDAQ: ADXS) is a very small biotech company with a market capitalization of approximately $ 25 million Following an IPO in 2005. Advaxis relies on a new immunotherapy platform using recombinant protein antigens obtained from attenuated proteins. Listeria monocytogenes bacteria (rather than viral proteins) to activate and alert the immune system to target cancer cells badociated with HPV. Axalimogene filolisbac is Advaxis' lead candidate for the treatment of cervical cancer caused by HPV and is currently in Phase III clinical trials.

Founded in 2011, Hookipa Pharma, headquartered in Vienna, received a total of $ 101.2 million in funding after raising funds through a C series in 2017. The startup focuses on a new platform using arenaviruses, single-stranded RNA viruses that usually infect rodents, as vectors to trigger an immune response. (Our answer: yuck!) HB-201 and HB-202 are two programs that are based on the TheraT vector for the treatment of HPV-badociated head and neck cancers, which have recently completed preclinical trials. TheraT is designed to elicit a strong T-cell response and turn cold tumors into warm targets for the immune system.

Founded in 2012 as Hera Therapeutics, Antiva Biosciences is a biopharmaceutical company based in the San Francisco area that brought together a total of $ 56.3 million after a series C round in 2018. The company had initially been separated from UC San Diego. Antiva Biosciences focuses its antiviral technology on a topical intrabadl cream called ABI-1968, which has completed Phase 1a clinical trials to evaluate its safety profile.

Pipeline of Antiva Biosciences products. Credit: Antiva Biosciences

The cream was well tolerated at all doses applied during the test.

Founded in 2014, PathoVax is a biotechnology startup from Johns Hopkins University that grew up $ 5.8 million in funding up to now. PathoVax uses proprietary vaccine technology based on a virus-like particle called RGVax. Preclinical trials show promising results because RGVax can protect up to 27 HPV subtypes.

Founded in early 2018, Virion Therapeutics, a Philadelphia-based company, is a start-up from the Wistar Institute and recently raised $ 5 million in Series A funding. The company's technology is based on anti-HPV cancer vaccines that inhibit a point of control of the immune response that causes T-cell dormancy. Virion develops this platform by delivering Inhibitor with the aid of non-human primate adenovirus vectors to increase the effectiveness of delivery.

conclusions

The HPV vaccine industry is a lucrative business that can raise a whole host of challenges beyond science and medicine. Merck, the maker of Gardasil, reports $ 1.7 billion just for sales of this vaccine. But this has always been the case with the pharmaceutical industry and saving lives with remedies should always be a financially viable venture. Indeed, we can not all match the altruism of Jonas Salk, the medical inventor of polio vaccine who refused to patent his work and gave up a potential $ 7 billion. But as long as the robots do not master the mundane work and universal basic income, that everyone plays electronic sport all day instead of working, we can thank the for-profit companies for working hard to find the HPV cure and rid the world of bad warts and cervical cancer. and earn a few billion dollars in the process.

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