Vascarta Inc.
A pharmaceutical company with a patented topical/transdermal delivery platform to benefit human health
Many current drugs are poorly bioavailable. In fact, according to a recent review*, “In recent years, according to drug detection, the number of poorly soluble drugs has increased, with 70% of novel medications presenting low aqueous solubility.”
What this means is many drugs, botanicals, and dietary supplements do NOT reach their therapeutic potential. To demonstrate how Vascarta’s patented topical transdermal delivery platform can fundamentally improve bioavailability and maximize therapeutic potential, Vascarta developed its first formulation using curcumin, a major active constituent in the spice turmeric.
We chose curcumin because hundreds if not thousands of studies have illustrated substantial therapeutic potential tracing to curcumin’s potent anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-pain mechanisms of action. However, bioavailability and stability issues have prevented curcumin’s full therapeutic benefits from being realized … until now.
Vascarta’s patented topical/transdermal gel formulation of curcumin solubilizes curcumin >100X more than traditional curcumin topicals. The solubility enhancement and the skin permeation properties of our formulation enable substantially greater and sustained penetration deep into the skin versus conventional gel, cream, or ointment technology. Unlike curcumin orals that have bioavailability limitations, Vascarta’s curcumin formulation directly and readily accesses capillaries, our smallest blood vessels. Once there, Vascarta’s curcumin formulation loads onto and into blood cells as well as into the plasma. These curcumin-loaded, and now healthier, blood cells can then distribute the beneficial curcumin throughout the circulation. This unique mode of delivery creates enhanced therapeutic efficacy.
The animal research we have with Vascarta’s initial topical/transdermal curcumin formulation, described in more detail in the research section of this website, suggests this formulation may have profound benefits for reducing pain and inflammation, increasing the integrity of blood vessels, improving the health of red blood cells, decreasing frailty associated with aging, and more.
Based on this positive animal research, we aspire to conduct human clinical studies in several areas of unmet medical need, including:
- Osteoarthritis
Particularly among those sensitive to the potential cardiovascular and gastrointestinal bleeding side effects of NSAIDs, the liver and kidney toxicity concerns of acetaminophen, and/or the addiction and overdose concerns of opioids
- Sickle Cell Disease
Existing medicines still have limited efficacy and/or have side effects and/or are extremely expensive (gene therapies costing ~$3 million)
- Blood stabilization
For those undergoing physical trauma such as members of the military or accident victims
- Other conditions with unmet medical need involving inflammation and/or red blood cell instability including:
Hypertension, Alzheimer’s, Frailty associated with aging, Long Covid, Lupus, etc.
Importantly, Vascarta’s patented topical/transdermal delivery system can be used not only with curcumin and other potent botanicals like quercetin, fisetin, etc., but also in combination with synthetic drug molecules, either generic or still branded, offering incremental therapeutic benefits and adding to patent protection. Vascarta welcomes partnering discussions with other healthcare companies and with potential investors.
* Bioavailability Enhancement Techniques for Poorly Aqueous Soluble Drugs and Therapeutics” Biomedicines. 2022 Sep; 10(9): 2055.
