INNOVATIVE THERAPEUTIC AGENTS AND METHODOLOGIES FOR DEGENERATIVE DISEASES

THE PROJECT PURSUES TO DEVELOP NEW CHEMICAL ENTITIES AND INNOVATIVE METHODOLOGIES THAT COULD ACHIEVE SOME OF THE PRESENT CHALLENGES IN THE THERAPY OF DEGENERATIVE DISEASES. THIS PROPOSAL INVOLVES ORIENTED RESEARCH WITH A HIGH INTERDISCIPLINARY CHARACTER, WHICH INCLUDES ASPECTS RELATED TO THE FIRST STAGES OF DRUG DEVELOPMENT PROCESS: I) UNDERSTANDING AT MOLECULAR LEVEL THE BIOLOGICAL SYSTEMS TO RATIONALLY DESIGN PROPER CANDIDATES TO PRESENT BIOACTIVITY: II) SYNTHESIS OF THE CORRESPONDING SMALL MOLECULES, POLYMERS, AND FUNCTIONAL NANOMATERIALS TARGETED; AND III) DETERMINATION OF THE BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITY IN VITRO AND, EVENTUALLY, IN VIVO OF THE MOLECULES AND FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS OBTAINED. MORE SPECIFICALLY, THIS PROJECT CONTEMPLATES TO GENERATE SIGNIFICANT ADVANCES IN THE FOLLOWING SPECIFIC AREAS: I) THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW SYNTHETIC PHOTOMODULATORS OF NEURONAL ACTIVITY, ACTIVATED BY NIR LIGHT, THAT WOULD HAVE A GREAT IMPACT IN PHOTOPHARMACOLOGY AND OPTOGENETICS, ADVANCING IN THE USE OF THESE METHODOLOGIES IN IN VIVO TISSUES THAT HARDLY SUPPORT UV LIGHT; II) THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW ANTI-INFLAMMATORY PHOTOACTIVABLE DRUGS WOULD IMPROVE THE EFFICIENCY OF TREATMENTS FOR SEVERAL DISEASES AS OSTEOARTHRITIS, AVOIDING MOST PART OF THE UNDESIRABLE SECONDARY EFFECT OF THE PRESENT LONG-TERM USED DRUGS AS CELECOXIB; III) THE DEVELOPMENT OF NOVEL POSITIVE ALLOSTERIC MODULATORS OF CANNABINOID RECEPTORS WHICH COULD ENHANCE THE NEUROPROTECTIVE ACTIVITY OF ORTHOSTERIC AGONISTS AND REPRESENT A THERAPEUTIC APPROACH FOR NEURODEGENERATIVE DISORDERS SUCH AS ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE; IV) THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE NEW TRANSTHYRETIN (TTR) AMYLOIDOGENESIS INHIBITORS WOULD IMPROVE THE CURRENT THERAPY FOR TRANSTHYRETIN AMYLOID CARDIOMYOPATHY TREATMENT AND; V) THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW CATECHOL-BASED BIOADHESIVES AND BIOCOMPATIBLE MAGNETIC NANOPARTICLES WOULD PROVIDE ALTERNATIVE BIOMATERIALS TO CONVENTIONAL METHODS FOR WOUND HEALING AND TO NEW HYPERTHERMIC MAGNETIC NANOPARTICLES IN CANCER THERAGNOSTIC, RESPECTIVELY.