The integrity and thus the function of blood–brain barrier (BBB) TJs play a crucial role in the pathomechanism of neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases. Previously, it has been suggested that targeting different elements of the zonulin pathway, including actin filaments, TJs, or NF-κB, have potential therapeutic effects on CNS diseases. Indeed, encouraging results are accumulating from a recent preclinical study, using myosin light chain kinase (MLCK) inhibitor ML-7, which attenuates BBB disruption by preventing the disintegration of actin cytoskeletal microfilaments. Similarly, blocking the cleavage of TJ proteins by matrix metalloproteases (MMP) inhibitors, using either direct (broad-spectrum or selective MMP-2 and MMP-9) or indirect inhibitors (COX) has been shown to protect BBB. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPAR-γ) agonists, such as rosiglitazone, pioglitazone, or D-allose, also prevented BBB integrity by inhibiting NF-κB activation. Therefore, the use of zonulin inhibitors seems to be justified in the treatment of CNS diseases.
Condition | Results | Study (Enrollment) |
Clinical Trials Identifier | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
Healthy | good tolerability | Phase I (24) |
NCT00386490 | [3] |
Celiac disease, gluten-free diet |
good tolerability | |||
Celiac disease, | ||||
gluten-free diet | ||||
(terminated based on interim analysis) | Phase III | (307) |
NCT03569007 | [15][16] |
COVID19—MIS-C | improvement in clinical symptoms, decreased level of inflammatory markers and SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid (N) protein | case report (1) |
Model | Species | Administration | Daily Dose | Results | Ref. | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
celiac disease | gliadin-sensitized HLA-HCD4/DQ8 transgenic mouse | p.o. gavage |
0.25 mg | reduced intestinal permeability and macrophage infiltration | [21] | |||||
Phase Ib | (21) | NCT00386165 | [4] | |||||||
p.o. gavage | ] | Celiac disease, gluten challenge | improvement in GI symptoms, good tolerability |
Phase IIa (80) |
NCT00362856 | |||||
intestinal permeability | Il10−/− mouse | [ | 5 | ][6][7][ | ||||||
[ | ||||||||||
17 | ||||||||||
] | ||||||||||
0.3 mg | reduced intestinal permeability | [ | 8 | ] | ||||||
22 | p.o. | gavage |
5 mg | reduced intestinal permeability and inflammation | [23] | Celiac disease, gluten challenge | improvement in histological scores, good tolerability |
Phase IIb (105) |
NCT00620451 | [9][10] |
spontaneous colitis | p.o. in drinking water |
0.1 or 1 mg/mL | reduced intestinal permeability and inflammation | [24] | Celiac disease, gluten challenge |
Target | Type | Compound | Cell Line | Effect on TJs and/or Transcellular Permeability |
Ref. | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
PAR2 | peptidic antagonist | FSLLRY-NH2 | pHNECs | harmful | [46] | ||||||||
SLIGRL-NH2 | |||||||||||||
non-peptidic full agonist | AC-55541 | hBMECs | protective | [50] | |||||||||
small molecule antagonist | GB88 | A549 | [48] | ||||||||||
improvement in GI symptoms, decreased level of anti-tTG IgA | Phase IIb | (171) |
NCT00492960 | [ | |||||||||
DSS induced colitis | zonulin transgenic mouse | p.o. in drinking water | 11 | 1 mg/mL | |||||||||
hECs | [49] | ] | [ | 12] | |||||||||
reduced intestinal permeability | [ | 25 | ] | Celiac disease, persistent symptoms with gluten-free diet | improvement in GI and extra-GI symptoms, | ||||||||
GB83 | good tolerability | Phase IIb (342) |
Caco2NCT01396213 | [13][14] | |||||||||
radiation-induced enteropathy | mouse | i.p. | 0.25 mg | harmfulimproved clinical state and histological scores, inhibited bacterial translocation, elevated TJ protein levels | [26] | ||||||||
[ | 47 | ] | healthy (pharmacokinetics) |
pig | p.o. | ||||||||
EGFR | capsule | 0.05 mg/kg | determining pharmacokinetics of larazotide acetate in the small intestine | [27 | tyrosine kinase inhibitor | AG1478 | hCMEC/D3] | ||||||
protective | [ | 51 | ] | Ruminococcus blautia gnavus colonization | germ-free mouse | p.o. in drinking water |
0.15 mg/mL | reduced intestinal permeability | COVID19—MIS-C | improvement in GI symptoms, decreased level of SARS-CoV-2 Spike (S) protein | case series (4) |
[18] | |
[ | 28 | ] | |||||||||||
Calu-3 | [52] | spontaneous T1D | BB diabetic-prone rat | p.o. in drinking water |
0.01 mg/mL | ||||||||
HSC-3 | inhibited development of diabetes | [ | 29 | ] | [53 | COVID19—MIS-C | (not completed) | Phase IIa (20) |
NCT05022303 | [19 | |||
rheumatoid arthritis | mouse | ] |
] |
p.o. | |||||||
in drinking water | |||||||
0.15 mg/mL | |||||||
attenuated arthritis | |||||||
[ | 30 | ] | |||||
erlotinib | IEC-6 | harmful | [54] | Il10ra−/− mouse, Cldn8−/− mouse |
p.o. | ||
gefitinib | gavage |
2 × 0.05 mg | [ | reduced intestinal permeability, inflammation, and joint swelling | 55[31] | ||
] | vasculitis | mouse | i.p. | 0.5 mg | reduced intestinal permeability and LPS translocation, prevented cardiovascular lesions | [32] | |
icotinib | LPS-induced acute lung injury | i.t. | |||||
dacomitinib | 0.05 mg | reduced severity, decreased inflammatory markers | [ | 33] | |||
T84 | [ | 57] | i.v. | ||||
lapatinib | 0.01 or 0.025 or 0.05 mg | ||||||
HBCCs | [ | 58] | influenza | i.v. | 0.15 mg | reduced severity of acute lung injury | [34] |
vandetanib | Calu-6 | [59] | salivary gland fibrosis | i.p. | 5 mg/kg | improved epithelial barrier function, ameliorated fibrosis | [35] |
NAFLD | p.o. in drinking water |
0.1 or 1 mg/mL | reduced intestinal permeability | [36] | |||
p.o. gavage |
2 × 0.03 or 2 × 0.3 mg | ||||||
acute liver failure | rat | p.o. in drinking water |
0.01 mg/mL | decreased intestinal damage | [37] | ||
p.o. gavage |
2 × 0.03 mg |