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Hormonal Pathways
Harbor BioSciences’s compounds are based on naturally occurring human steroid hormones derived from dehydroepiandrosterone, which in turn is produced by pregnenalone.
Numerous highly successful drugs have been produced from pregnenalone-derived hormones. Among these are cortisol and other corticosteroids that come from the glucocorticoid class of hormones. Corticosteroids are used to treat a variety of ailments, including asthma and other inflammatory conditions, with tens of millions of prescriptions written each year in the U.S. alone. In many cases, however, use of corticosteroids is limited by their toxicity and immune suppressive effects. To address this issue, the pharmaceutical industry moved away from steroids and developed NSAIDs, or non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, a broader class of agents that achieved reduced side effects, but with diminished therapeutic results. More recently, the “biologics” have emerged: cytokines, antibodies, and similar highly complex molecules. These drugs, although highly efficacious, are expensive and can be plagued with serious side effects.
Dehydroepiandrosterone also produces sex hormones that have yielded significant and widely used pharmaceuticals. Among these are drugs derived from the hormone estrogen and prescribed for birth control and the treatment of osteoporosis and menopause. Drugs derived from the hormone testosterone are used in treating sexual dysfunction. Unlike the hormones estrogen and testosterone, however, the specific class of steroid hormones being developed by Harbor BioSciences are designed to minimize interaction with sex steroid receptors, while retaining their beneficial regulatory and regenerative properties.
In contrast, Harbor BioSciences’s compounds appear from preclinical studies to share the anti-inflammatory properties of these currently marketed products, but potentially without the accompanying toxicity. As a result, they may represent a class of “smart steroids” for use in autoimmune, inflammatory and other dysregulated conditions.