Technology

Did you know that there are thousands of FDA approved drug compounds that are only certified for treating specific diseases?  Why?  Basically, because no one has evaluated if those drugs would work for treating other seemingly unrelated diseases.  But, many diseases have similar molecular underpinnings.  And, many drugs have multiple methods of action.  So, we are employing artificial intelligence (AI) to come up with a list of approved FDA drugs that may have a positive effect on other diseases.   

While disease models can be quickly and easily be created in zebrafish, we have also pioneered in vitro techniques to isolate and grow human, zebrafish, and mouse stem cells (and other cell types) in the laboratory.  Being able to grow these cells outside of an organism allows rapid screening of FDA approved drug compounds, along with screening thousands of other compounds that have been either synthesized or isolated from natural sources.  In effect, many of these compounds have simply been stored away- scientists and drug companies just don't know what they do, if anything.  In other words, we can test these compounds to see if they'll have a positive effect on any disease after creating a model to observe that defect.    

We have pioneered rapid disease model creation utilizing CRISPR technology and Danio rerio (zebrafish).  Disease models in whole developing embryos can be created quickly and efficiently.  Importantly, zebrafish also mature quickly and are transparent, allowing studies and visualization of developing diseases in an organism.  So, we can observe disease development and design methods of treatment early and quickly after onset.