By targeting a mechanism that fundamental to aging, Revel is putting its strongest foot forward in the longevity space.
Revel Pharmaceuticals emerged from the labs at Yale in 2020; working on drugs targeting collagen crosslinks, and with the aim of restoring tissue function and repairing the body, Revel has been developing therapeutic enzymes that break down the links between advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) in order to “repair the molecular damage that accumulates with aging.”
Biotech that could repair damaging crosslinks and potentially reverse the age-related stiffening of blood vessels, skin and other tissues, could be a treatment for a range of conditions, from rising systolic blood pressure and skin aging, to kidney and brain damage.
Longevity.Technology: Dr Aaron Cravens will be speaking at Berlin’s Rejuvenation Startup Summit (14-15 October 2022), as part of an all-star line-up that includes Michael Greve, Eric Verdin, Brian Kennedy, Michael Sidler, Christian Angermayer and our own Phil Newman. Hosted by the Forever Healthy Foundation, this vibrant networking event aims to accelerate the development of the rejuvenation biotech industry.
Ahead of the Summit, we caught up with Aaron Cravens for a video interview in which he shares his views on the importance of crosslinking and advanced glycation end products, and what the clinical pipeline looks like for a therapeutic enzyme. Check it out below:
Aaron Cravens on…
Advanced glycation end products
Something I like to bring it back to – think about baking a turkey or baking a croissant. That beautiful browning layer that you see – that is the crux of what advanced glycation end products are. AGEs are effectively caramelised proteins that crosslink, and in food, they’re delicious, but in our bodies, they’re very pathological. Revel is very focused on removing the advanced glycation end products and crosslink products that slowly degrade and damage the matrix of the body.
Considering crosslinking as the tenth hallmark of aging
Crosslinking, protein aging and AGEs, in some sense, are already a hallmark of aging in that they participate in many of the other hallmarks, such as deregulated protein sensing, loss of proteostasis and altered intracellular communication. Whether or not crosslinking and protein aging is inked in as a formal hallmark, in some senses, it’s already there and the field treats it as such.
Overviewing the clinical pipeline
Similar to other biologic drugs, our process involves having several different enzymes targeted at several different AGE modifications, and Revel will be prioritising candidates based on animal efficacy data and viability for clinical development. What that means is we consider how compelling the data is around animal efficacy, how compelling is the market opportunity for a given target. Revel really wants to put its strongest foot forward in this space and the mechanism we are targeting is fundamental to aging.
