Invention:
This invention involves a novel mechanism-based therapy by using a small molecule compound to reduce aging and hypertensive aortic stiffening, subsequently improve blood pressure (BP) control in resistant hypertension patients and prevent or reverse pathologies of vascular cognitive impairment and dementia (VCID) and Alzheimer’s Disease (AD).
This approach works by inhibiting pro-stiffness signaling pathway to reduce aortic stiffness, disrupting the root cycle of hypertension. In addition, this mechanism mitigates cerebrovascular stiffening, cerebral hypoperfusion, and blood–brain barrier leakage, helping to prevent or reverse cerebrovascular dysfunction and AD-related pathology.
Background:
Aortic stiffening is a major driver of resistant hypertension (RH), leading to severe cardiovascular complications such as stroke, heart failure, and renal failure. It affects over 10 million people in the U.S. and approximately 200 million worldwide. Beyond cardiovascular consequences, aortic stiffening is also an independent risk factor for neurodegenerative disorders, particularly VCID and AD. These conditions carry high mortality rates among older adults and lack effective treatments, posing a growing healthcare and societal burden.
This recently identified novel small-molecule inhibitor targets aortic stiffening, the root cause linking cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disorders, and would offer a new therapy to prevent and treat RH, VCID, and AD, addressing a critical unmet medical need.
Applications:
- Anti-hypertensive therapeutics
- Aortic stiffening therapeutic
- Cardiovascular health
- Cerebrovascular therapeutics
- Neurodegenerative disease therapeutics (e.g. dementia, Alzheimer’s Disease)
Advantages:
- Mechanism-based: targets the underlying molecular drivers of vascular stiffness
- Dual benefit: improves both cardiovascular and neurovascular health
- Disease-modifying: addresses the root cause of vascular aging and hypertension, offering durable and long-term therapeutic benefits
- Broad translational impact for related cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disorders
- Complementary: enhances efficacy of current antihypertensive treatments
