One of the objectives of the exclusive licensing agreement is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of treating stroke patients with caffeinol, administered by intravenous infusion, in combination with InnerCool’s endovascular hypothermia technology. A study has been proposed to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, part of the National Institutes of Health.
Christopher Reinhard, chairman and CEO of Cardium Therapeutics and InnerCool Therapies, said: “Despite the use of thrombolytic drugs such as tissue plasminogen activator or tPA and improved clot retrieval devices, stroke is now the third most prevalent cause of death among adults in the US and is the leading cause of serious long-term disability.
“There is clearly a critical need for new means of addressing this major medical condition and this licensing agreement with the University of Texas, together with financial support from the NIH, will allow us to further explore the safety and efficacy of both caffeinol and hypothermia as potential treatments for ischemic stroke patients.”