Oxygen is fundamental to human survival, organ function, and quality of life.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a lung ailment that affects about 16 million people in the US alone. The most common cause is cigarette smoking. COPD is the 6th leading cause of death in the US, and 3rd leading cause of death in the world. COPD patients have poor lung function because their alveoli (air sacs) are always distended and their bronchioles (passages into the lung) are constricted. Inhaled combination therapies can partially improve lung function, but oxygenation of hemoglobin in the blood is still usually incomplete. There are currently no COPD treatments focused on improving the oxygen carrying capacity of the blood.
Aside from COPD, another severe form of hypoxia is seen in Cystic fibrosis, a common genetic disorder in which transport of chloride ion (Cl-) is impaired. One result is that the lungs fill with fluid, and oxygen delivery is poor. About 30,000 people in the US suffer from cystic fibrosis.
Patients with severe COVID-19 infections are often hospitalized when their lungs fill with fluid and oxygen delivery is poor. Even when patients survive this condition, they often have organ damage (including brain damage) that likely results from prolonged hypoxia.
Learn about our lead program to