PEGylated FN-Binding Peptide for Therapy and Imaging of Pulmonary Fibrosis

The goal of this project is to determine the therapeutic and the diagnostic potential of a water-soluble PEGylated Functional Upstream Domain (FUD) peptide based on a fibronectin (FN) binding protein of Streptococcus pyogenes, focusing on a novel therapy for pulmonary fibrosis.

In collaboration with Dr. Nathan Sandbo with the UW School of Medicine & Public Health, PEG-FUD peptide disrupts FN fibrillogenesis and collagen deposition in a bleomycin mouse model of pulmonary fibrosis. The specific aims are to determine the efficacy of PEG-FUD peptide in disrupting extracellular matrix deposition and promoting resolution of pulmonary fibrosis and to determine the temporal uptake and localization of PEG-FUD peptide into areas of active fibrosis in vivo.

In vitro matrix assembly experiment (top) and confocal fluorescence microscopy experiment (bottom) showing binding of FUD and PEGylated FUD on fibronectin. Adapted from Zbyszynski et al., Pharm Res, 2018 and Zbyszynski et al., Nano Convergence, 2019.