A new company developing a drug to repair spinal injuries
There is no current cure for the spinal cord injuries affecting 15 million patients worldwide. Many people lose the ability to move as a result of traumatic injuries, and for some the harm is irreversible because there is no treatment to regenerate damaged nerves. Midland Pharmaceuticals, a new Midlands-born company, is developing a groundbreaking drug that has the potential to repair spinal injuries, raising hopes for recovery.
Its therapy, called MLP-1236, has shown promising results in early trials on mice and rats with spinal cord compression injuries, which are similar to those seen in humans after bad accidents. The treatment works by blocking two enzymes known as matrix metalloprotease- (MMP)-9 and MMP-12, which are involved in the body’s inflammatory response to central nervous system injury.
In 2022, Professor Zubair Ahmed, from the University of Birmingham found that the drug substantially reduced swelling, pain and scarring in injured mice and rats. Crucially, it also promoted significant nerve regeneration. Mice and rats administered the drug showed an 85% improvement in movement and sensation within six weeks after their injury, when compared to injured mice and rats which did not receive the treatment. Their nerve function returned to 80% of that seen in uninjured mice and rats, implying that an almost full recovery is possible.
This is a therapy that could potentially reverse the disability that you see as a result of spinal cord injury.
Professor Ahmed has now joined forces with Professor Arshad Majid, Deputy Dean of Sheffield University’s Division of Neurosciences, and NLC Health Ventures, Europe’s largest early-stage healthcare investor, to launch Midland Pharmaceuticals in May 2024.
The company has appointed a CEO, Dr Peter D. Suzdak, a veteran healthcare chief executive with a record of commercialising novel therapeutics. It is now raising funds to trial the drug on humans and bring it to market.
The researchers hope that as well as repairing spinal injuries, MLP-1236 could be used to treat other conditions affecting the central nervous system, such as traumatic brain injury and stroke. “There are 15 million people worldwide who suffer stroke every year, and about 60 million more with traumatic brain injury, so the potential for this therapy is huge,” Professor Ahmed argues.
University of Birmingham Enterprise has worked with Professor Ahmed to patent and promote the treatment since his first trial in 2022. “They've supported me all the way through," he says.
As soon as I had something worthwhile that I could protect, I went straight to UoB Enterprise. I like the fact that you work with the same people right from the start, from developing the idea, to patenting, and negotiating the licensing deals for the University with NLC Healthcare.”
Professor Ahmed also credits the Enterprise team with raising the profile of his research, by generating international media coverage that drew investor attention, and forging industry contacts. “They very quickly put in place a business manager who reached out to companies that might be interested in this molecule,” he says. “It’s difficult for me as an academic to go out to the market. But if I have somebody representing me from UoB Enterprise, it carries a lot of weight.”
Aerial view of University campus, Birmingham Research Park and Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital
Facilities available through the University campus and Birmingham Research Park, as well as proximity to Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital, are helping young healthcare companies establish a footprint in the region, he adds: “I've been able to do everything I’ve done because of the infrastructure. Whatever you want, whether it’s devices or AI, we’ve got the support available within Birmingham. The University has a real desire to support translational research, because that is what will give us impact and bring about transformational changes for our patients. The hospital is also a great resource, because there are ready patients when you move from research to clinical trials.”
Academics are playing a growing role commercialising medical research, particularly in areas that are not prioritised by large pharmaceutical companies. “These companies spend billions developing a single drug, and that means they usually go after things that affect a lot of people, like cancer and heart disease. Spinal cord injury affects only about 4,500 people in the UK annually, so it is not a big enough focus for them,” Professor Ahmed notes.
After it completes a Series A fundraising round, Midland Pharmaceuticals will launch a Phase 2b clinical trial of MLP-1236 in patients with spinal cord injuries. It is also planning a second clinical trial for stroke patients.