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UNSCRIPTED SCIENCE

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UNEXPECTED OUTCOMES

We started Mercaptor because science moves forward on unsteady feet relying on a tiny amount of fortuity mixed into a vast trough of human frailty.

Introducing Captons ™

Mercaptor develops drugs to treat damage, dysfunction, and degeneration of the brain. Our molecules, called Captons, are designed to reduce acute and progressive pathologies initiated by neuronal injury. Captons combine three complementary neuroprotective activities into a single small-molecule agent.

Science Worth Exploring

Much of our time and effort has revolved around sulfur biochemistry. One day, we tripped over something unexpected, a result lying outside of our assumptions. The opportunity obliges us to take responsibility for the continued development of what we have learned.
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Captons are unlike any drugs found in the historical pharmacopeia. They are enhanced by design, with chemosensitivity matched to conditions within distressed tissue. The ability to deliver a measured, countervailing response upon encountering pathology, but not before, directly addresses problems which have historically thwarted efforts to develop pharmacological interventions that yield meaningful benefit. Captons are engaged by specific metabolites elevated within damaged or diseased brain tissue. The primary response is the conversion of captons, in situ, from silent to active therapeutics. Conversion occurs rapidly and efficiently, driven by multiple neuropathological sources of oxidative stress. Capton activation, therefore, is localized to those areas of the CNS that would benefit from active capton. Duration of tissue exposure to activated capton is also partly determined by those intervals during which pathophysiology defines cellular behavior.

Mercaptor has directed its drug-development efforts toward epilepsy and traumatic brain injury, which share key features of pathophysiology relevant to COVID19. By expanding our approach in the lab, we have been able to begin resourcing programs to ease the suffering caused by the pandemic. Each of the three drug candidates selected for accelerated development at Mercaptor brings documented anti-inflammatory potency acting on separate, but complementary, pathways.

In the laboratoryWith Captons our approach is investigational and without precedent. It promises significant improvements in the performance of a variety of drugs.

If dosage is metered and delimited by the pathogenic species it is designed to treat, interference in healthy tissue function could be minimized.

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Avoiding the false comfort of certainty, honest scientists sometimes catch a glimpse into the infinite Universe.

These rare insights are more likely to help move the world forward than countless years spent trying to prove expectations. The opportunity obliges us to take responsibility for the continued development of what we have learned.

Up With People

Mercaptor is a privately-held company, headquartered in Novato, California. We strive to do good science, sweeten brutal honesty with genuine friendship, and share each workday with as many dogs as possible.

Real Science

Whether we are at the bench, at the computer, or walking the dogs, we are a symbiotic assemblage of scientists.
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Mercaptor News

ALEA Journal

Mercaptor in the ALEA Journal

We happy to be picked up by the ALEA Journal: https://issuu.com/aleajournal/docs/alea_journal_with_new_logo_position/13 For more on the ALEA Journal, click here.

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January 29, 2020 No Comments