Disclosed are variants of ACE2, pharmaceutical compositions comprising the variants of ACE2, and treatment methods for reducing Angiotensin II (1-8) plasma levels and/or increasing Angiotensin (1-7) plasma levels in a subject in need thereof. The disclosed variants of ACE2 may include polypeptide fragments of ACE2 having ACE2 activity for converting AngII(1-8) to Ang(1-7). Suitable subjects suitable for the disclosed methods of treatment may include subjects having or at risk for developing diabetic and non-diabetic chronic kidney disease, acute renal failure and its prevention, chronic kidney disease, severe hypertension, scleroderma and its skin, pulmonary, kidney and hypertensive complications, malignant hypertension, renovascular hypertension secondary to renal artery stenosis, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, liver fibrosis such as in liver cirrhosis patients, an aortic aneurysm, cardiac fibrosis and remodeling, left ventricular hypertrophy, and an acute stroke.

The present invention relates to modified angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) polypeptides and pharmaceutical and analytical uses thereof. In particular, the present invention relates to Zn.sup.2+ depleted-, Zn.sup.2+ free-, mixed metal- and metal ion substituted-ACE2 as well as methods for the manufacture of these variants and uses thereof, such as therapeutic and analytic uses of these ACE2 variants.

Emerging evidence indicates that diminished activity of the vasoprotective axis of the renin-angiotensin system, constituting angiotensin converting enzyme2 (ACE2) and its enzymatic product, angiotensin-(1-7) [Ang-(1-7)] contribute to pulmonary hypertension (PH). However, clinical success for long-term delivery of ACE2 or Ang-(1-7) would require stability and ease of administration to increase patient compliance. Chloroplast expression of therapeutic proteins enables their bioencapsulation within plant cells to protect from acids and gastric enzymes; fusion to a transmucosal carrier facilitates effective systemic absorption. Oral feeding of rats with bioencapsulated ACE2 or Ang-(1-7) attenuated monocrotaline (MCT)-induced increase in right ventricular systolic pressure, decreased pulmonary vessel wall thickness and improved right heart function in both prevention and reversal protocols. Furthermore, combination of ACE2 and Ang-(1-7) augmented the beneficial effects against cardio-pulmonary pathophysiology induced by MCT administration.

Experiments have also been performed which indicate that this approach is also suitable for the treatment or inhibition of experimental uveitis and autoimmune uveoretinitis These studies provide proof-of-concept for a novel low-cost oral ACE2 or Ang-(1-7) delivery system using transplastomic technology for pulmonary and ocular disease therapeutics.

This disclosure is directed to inhibitory oligonucleotides, inhibitory peptides, compositions and methods for preventing or treating Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In one aspect, the disclosure is directed to compositions that comprise inhibitory oligonucleotides against one or more SARS-CoV-2 virus genes. In another aspect, the disclosure is directed to compositions that comprise inhibitory peptides that inhibit SARS-COV-2 entry into cells. Another aspect of the disclosure is directed to gene therapy methods for treating COVID-19, and vectors for carrying out the same. Finally, the disclosure provides nutritional supplements to support human immunity and prevent or inhibit viral infections.

The present disclosure provides various insights relating to treatment of viral infection with soluble ACE2 variants, specifically including soluble human ACE2 (hACE2) variants. For example, the present disclosure teaches that decoy activity, which may intercept virus-receptor interactions, and ACE2 enzymatic activity can provide separate contributions to therapeutic efficacy; among other things, the present disclosure provides particular therapeutic regimens (e.g., relating to treatment of particular patient populations and/or to dosing regimens, combination therapies, etc.) for certain soluble ACE2 variants. Still further, the present disclosure provides certain particular ACE2 variants and methods of making and/or using them, including in accordance with particular therapeutic regimens.

The present invention provides a virus collection matrix, including: a porous gel or fibrous structure formed by a positively charged polymer material; and a plurality of ACE 2 receptors. The plurality of ACE 2 receptors are negatively charged, and distributed and covered on the surface of the porous gel or fibrous structure. The whole virus collection matrix is positively charged.

The present disclosure provides fish-derived peptides with ACE inhibitory activity, and methods of producing peptide isolates comprising the fish-derived peptides. The present disclosure also provides pharmaceutical products, dietary supplements, and functional foods including the peptide isolates, and method of lowering blood pressure of a subject by administering to the subject one or more of the fish-derived peptides.

The present invention relates, in part, to compositions and methods for treating or preventing coronavirus infection.

An antisense oligonucleotide is provided which induces exon skipping in ACE2 gene. An antisense oligonucleotide of 15-30 bases or a salt or a solvate thereof, wherein the antisense oligonucleotide has a nucleotide sequence complementary to a target site in exon 18 of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 gene and is capable of inducing exon skipping in angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 gene. A pharmaceutical drug comprising the antisense oligonucleotide or a salt or a solvate thereof; and an agent for inhibiting the expression of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 protein and/or for enhancing the expression of soluble angiotensin-converting enzyme 2.

A synthesis method of a targeted drug nCoVshRNA.2ACE2 of a COVID-19 virus, which includes the following steps: designing a consensus RNAi sequence siRNA of the COVID-19 virus and a variant strain thereof; synthesizing two complementary siRNAs into a small hairpin-shaped shRNA with a loop, and synthesizing ACE2 or a cell penetrating peptide ACE2 with a receptor-binding domain (RBD) as a ligand; and ligating the ACE2 to a sense strand and an antisense strand of the shRNA separately to synthesize the nCoVshRNA.2ACE2 including a shRNA region and an ACE2 region. The bivalent ACE2 functions to neutralize the RBD and deliver the shRNA in a targeted manner; an “shRNA-ACE2-RBD-virus” complex bridged by the ACE2 allows the shRNA to enter target cells with virus infection, thereby avoiding a side effect of non-specific delivery of the shRNA to uninfected cells, as well as resisting the variant strain and neutralizing the virus with the ACE2.