Corautus progresses VEGF-2 research

Under the agreement, Corautus will provide its proprietary vascular endothelial growth factor, VEGF-2, to Caritas St Elizabeth’s Medical Center (CSEMC) for evaluation. The phase I trial at CSEMC will recruit 64 patients with critical limb ischemia (CLI).

CSEMC is the sponsor of this clinical trial which will be conducted under a funding grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). If phase I trial data is promising, Corautus has the right to utilize and reference the CSEMC clinical data as part of its own CLI clinical program.

In July 2003, Corautus entered into a strategic alliance with Boston Scientific to develop, commercialize and distribute VEGF-2 gene therapy products which includes treatments in the peripheral vascular system, such as CLI.

“Patients with CLI, a severe form of peripheral artery disease, have few treatment options once the disease has progressed to this stage. Following significant research, preclinical testing, and smaller human studies, we concluded that VEGF-2 holds potential as a new therapy for a large patient population with few therapeutic alternatives,” said Dr Douglas Losordo, chief of cardiovascular research CSEMC.

VEGF-2 is a naturally occurring growth factor that is believed to promote the development of supplemental collateral blood vessels, a process known as therapeutic angiogenesis.