About Us
The Macrobiome Therapeutics approach to drug discovery and development is underpinned by millennia of host-parasite co-evolution. Parasitic worms (helminths) have evolved to survive in humans while causing minimal pathology. A successful parasite is one that takes what it requires from its host while causing minimal damage.
Hookworms are a prime example of such an exquisitely adapted parasite. Hookworms are one-centimetre long parasites that reside in the gut of their human hosts for many years, where they suck blood to gain the required nutrients to mate and produce offspring. While in the gut, hookworms secrete molecules that suppress inflammation, just enough to ensure that they are not flushed out by our immune system, but sufficiently potent to reduce inappropriate inflammatory responses such as those that underpin autoimmunity and allergy.
Macrobiome Therapeutics is developing novel therapeutics that will inhibit chronic debilitating diseases with limited efficacious treatment options, such as IBD (Inflammatory Bowel Disease) and T2D (Type-2 Diabetes). The team consists of researchers with expertise in parasitology, mouse and human immunology, drug discovery, protein production and purification, and clinical trials.
