US 11,883,469 B2
Method of treating spinal cord injury
Pradeep Kumar, Johannesburg (ZA); Viness Pillay, Johannesburg (ZA); Yahya Essop Choonara, Johannesburg (ZA); and Girish Modi, Johannesburg (ZA)
Assigned to UNIVERSITY OF THE WITWATERSRAND, JOHANNESBURG, Johannesburg (ZA)
Appl. No. 16/956,935
Filed by UNIVERSITY OF THE WITWATERSRAND, JOHANNESBURG, Johannesburg (ZA)
PCT Filed Dec. 19, 2018, PCT No. PCT/IB2018/060345
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Jun. 22, 2020,
PCT Pub. No. WO2019/123317, PCT Pub. Date Jun. 27, 2019.
Claims priority of application No. ZA2017/08733 (ZA), filed on Dec. 21, 2017.
Prior Publication US 2020/0405821 A1, Dec. 31, 2020
Int. Cl. A61K 38/39 (2006.01); A61K 47/58 (2017.01); A61K 47/64 (2017.01); A61P 25/00 (2006.01); A61K 9/00 (2006.01); A61K 9/70 (2006.01); A61K 47/18 (2017.01); A61L 27/18 (2006.01); A61L 27/22 (2006.01); A61L 27/24 (2006.01); A61L 27/56 (2006.01)
CPC A61K 38/39 (2013.01) [A61K 9/0024 (2013.01); A61K 9/70 (2013.01); A61K 47/183 (2013.01); A61K 47/58 (2017.08); A61K 47/6435 (2017.08); A61L 27/18 (2013.01); A61L 27/227 (2013.01); A61L 27/24 (2013.01); A61L 27/56 (2013.01); A61P 25/00 (2018.01); A61L 2430/32 (2013.01)] 4 Claims
 
1. A method of treating a spinal cord injury comprising implantation of a pharmaceutical composition into a human or animal body at, near, adjacent to, or in connection with, a spinal cord of said human or animal body,
wherein the pharmaceutical composition comprises polyacrylonitrile (PANi), elastin (E), and collagen (C) together forming a polyacrylonitrile (PANi), elastin (E), collagen (C) polymer network (PANi-E-C), wherein the polyacrylonitrile (PANi) is crosslinked via a crosslinking agent to form a crosslinked, porous, semi-interpenetrating or interpenetrating polyacrylonitrile (PANi), elastin (E) and collagen (C) polymer network (xpi-PANi-E-C), wherein the crosslinked polyacrylonitrile (PANi) associates and/or bonds and/or connects with the elastin (E) and collagen (C) facilitating reorientation of secondary structure of proteins elastin (E) and collagen (C);
wherein the reorientation of the secondary structure of proteins elastin (E) and collagen (C) within xpi-PANi-E-C results in the concentration dependent secondary structure of proteins elastin (E) and collagen (C) being such that the concentration of random coils>a-helix>b-sheets>b-turns;
and wherein reorientation of both elastin (E) and collagen (C) provides for the reorientated secondary structure of proteins elastin (E) and collagen (C) to approximate, or to be in, their native or natural form as naturally found in the extra cellular matrix (ECM) of a human or animal such that the pharmaceutical composition mimics human or animal spinal cord tissue.