Bat biotech takes flight Harnessing the unusual biology of bats, researchers aim to turn drug discovery upside-down
impaired cleavage of the interleukin-1β precursor, a critical step facilitating cytokine secretion.
As Wang’s lab delves deeper into the translational possibilities around ASC2, others are pursuing further investigations into some of his previous discoveries related to another facet of the innate immune system.
When Zwaka received the samples, he was in for a fortuitous surprise. Of the two bat specimens that Juste had sent him, one turned out to be a pregnant female. The fibroblasts of its embryo proved most amenable to cellular reprogramming. The name reflects some of the founders’ early concepts around using bat iPS cells as a pandemic preparedness tool. Perhaps, by cataloguing all the viral relics found in bat genomes and checking which viruses come alive in the stem cells, they could better predict future spillover events. Or maybe they could develop broad-spectrum antiviral drugs that worked against potential zoonotic threats.
In consultation with Teeling and later Wang, both of whom were brought on as scientific founders, the Paratus team soon began to think bigger than their initial focus on pandemic readiness and infectious disease. Teeling’s research on bat longevity, specifically her exploration of genes governing telomere preservation and microRNAsregulating aging-related pathways, pointed to opportunities in the realms of oncology and other age-related diseases.
Thinking beyond viruses, some researchers are looking into bat responses against bacterial infections. Several research teams have injected bats with bacterial endotoxins andthat acute stress responses typical of other mammals do not kick in for bats. But unpublished experiments on blood samples — performed by Judith Mandl, an immunologist at McGill University in Montreal, and her colleagues — have taken this finding one step further.
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