Int J Med Sci 2024; 21(5):775-783. doi:10.7150/ijms.92920 This issue Cite
Research Paper
1. Department of Pediatrics, Kyung Hee University School of Medicine, Kyung Hee University Hospital at Gangdong, Seoul, South Korea.
2. Department of Pediatrics, Kyung Hee University School of Medicine, Kyung Hee University Hospital, Seoul, South Korea.
3. Department of Integrated Material's Development, CHA Meditech Co., Ltd, Daejeon, South Korea.
4. Department of Pediatrics, CHA Ilsan Medical Center, CHA University School of Medicine, Goyang, South Korea.
Pulmonary surfactants, a complex assembly of phospholipids and surfactant proteins such as SP-B and SP-C, are critical for maintaining respiratory system functionality by lowering surface tension (ST) and preventing alveolar collapse. Our study introduced five synthetic SP-B peptides and one SP-C peptide, leading to the synthesis of CHAsurf candidates (CHAsurf-1 to CHAsurf-5) for evaluation. We utilized a modified Wilhelmy balance test to assess the surface tension properties of the surfactants, measuring spreading rate, surface adsorption, and ST-area diagrams to comprehensively evaluate their performance. Animal experiments were performed on New Zealand white rabbits to test the efficacy of CHAsurf-4B, a variant chosen for its economic viability and promising ST reduction properties, comparable to Curosurf®. The study confirmed that higher doses of SP-B in CHAsurf-4 are associated with improved ST reduction. However, due to cost constraints, CHAsurf-4B was selected for in vivo assessment. The animal model revealed that CHAsurf-4B could restore alveolar structure and improve lung elasticity, akin to Curosurf®. Our research highlights the significance of cysteine residues and disulfide bonds in the structural integrity and function of synthetic SP-B analogues, offering a foundation for future surfactant therapy in respiratory disorders. This study's findings support the potential of CHAsurf-4B as a therapeutic agent, meriting further investigation to solidify its role in clinical applications.
Keywords: pulmonary surfactants, synthetic, pulmonary surfactant-associated protein B, disulfide bond, surface tension