Pentapeptide, targeting   Serum Amyloid A and Amyloid β 

suppresses /attenuates   chronic inflammation, autoimmunity  and neurodegeneration

Ma’ayan Shaked¹ , Haim Ovadia² , Keren-Or Amar¹, Lora Eshkar –Sebban¹ Shmuel Cohen¹ , Michal Melamed¹ , Jin Ryoun Kim ³ , Hanna Rosenmann⁴ ,Mary Cowman⁵, Ehud Cohen⁶ and David Naor¹

¹The Lautenberg Center of  Immunology and Cancer Research ,Faculty of Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel; ²Department of Neurology, Hadassah-Hebrew University  Medical Center , Jerusalem ,Israel; ³Othmer-Jacobs Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Polytechnic Institute of New York University,  Brooklyn, USA; ⁴Department of Neurology,The Agnes Ginges Center for Human Neurogenetics, Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center; ⁵Tandon School of Engineering, New York University, New York, NY, USA,  ⁶Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Institute for Medical Research Israel–Canada, Hebrew University, School of Medicine, Jerusalem, Israel;

Research Summary

5-mer peptide (MTADV-Methionin, Threonine, Alanine, Aspartic acid, Valine) was derived from a pro-inflammatory CD44 variant that expressed mostly, if not exclusively, in inflamed joints of a rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patient. The 5-MER MTADV is acetylated-N amidated-C to improve its stability.  The MTADV interacting with the amyloid proteins, Serum Amyloid A (SAA), transthyretin and Apolipoprotein B, prevents/attenuates aggregation or polymerization of pathological amyloid proteins (SAA, Transthyretin). In addition, preliminary evidence revealed that it can also target Amyloid β.  The MTADV peptide is polymerized in solution, displays β sheet configuration with alternating hydrophobic-hydrophilic amino acids, can cross cell membrane and lost its activity after amino acid scrambling. The 5-mer peptide exhibits therapeutic activity in mouse models of inflammatory diseases associated with the stress acute phase protein SAA, such as RA, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and multiple sclerosis (MS). For example, daily oral delivery of the MTADV peptide, starting 5 days after induction Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis (EAE) by MOG, attenuated limb paralysis   in mouse model of MS. This finding further indicates that the peptide can tolerate the digestive system. The 5-mer peptide does not interfere with normal immune responses, such as delayed type hypersensitivity and does not generate, as expected, neutralizing antibodies after IP injection.  C. elegans worms, expressing human Amyloid β transgene, which induces muscle paralysis, restore their movement potential after “feeding” with MTADV.  Finally, a preliminary experiment reveals that Alzheimer’s -like mice (5XFAD transgenic mice)-restored their learning potential after daily IP injection with MTADV peptide. To  this end, Alzheimer’s 5x FAD-transgenic  mice treated with MTADV showed the same learning potential as wild type mice, whereas the Alzheimer‘s mice, that were not treated with the peptide display learning difficulties. Can the peptide therapeutic effects   proven in animal model, be clinically translated?  This question the focus of our current studies.

1. Therapeutic effects of 5-MER peptide in inflammatory diseases
2. Therapeutic effects of 5-MER peptide in neurodegenerative diseases
3. 5-MER peptide as a cell penetrating therapeutic product

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Prof Mary Cowman,     Tandon School of Engineering, New York University, New York, NY, United States

Dr Jin Ryoun Kim,  Othmer-Jacobs Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Polytechnic Institute of New York University,  Brooklyn, USA

Prof Hanna Rosenmann, Department of Neurology,The Agnes Ginges Center for Human Neurogenetics, Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center

Prof Dimitrios Karusis, Department of Neurology, Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel

Dr Ibrahim Kassis, Department of Neurology, Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel

Prof Ehud Cohen, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Institute for Medical Research Israel–Canada, Hebrew University, School of Medicine, Jerusalem, Israel