In-licensed candidate may be an effective intervention for premature infants with respiratory distress syndrome
The Lundquist Institute (TLI) and The Bill & Melinda Gates Medical Research Institute (Gates MRI) executed a license agreement for TLI intellectual property covering a synthetic lung surfactant formulation to be developed for respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) for premature infants in Low- and Middle-Income countries (LMIC).
TLI already maintains patents on this invention in the United States, Canada and Europe. Newborns experiencing RDS must dramatically increase the effort to take each breath, due to lack of adequate, naturally-occurring surfactant production in their lungs.
This deficiency of lung surfactant leads to fatigue, episodes of apnea, hypoxia, wasting, and potentially death if untreated. The standard of care is injecting naturally-occurring surfactant, normally animal-derived, into the lungs of preterm babies--a definitive treatment that is lifesaving, but it's only available in specialty newborn care centers such as Neonatal Intensive Care Units.