# Genetic profiling of SLE patients with impaired NET degradation.

> **NIH NIH R43** · NEUTROLIS, INC. · 2020 · $251,744

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
Systemic Lupus Erythematous (SLE) is the most common form of lupus, accounting for approximately 70% of
all lupus cases. Patients can present with a multitude of clinical manifestations and with a diverse range of
serological biomarkers making diagnosis and therapy challenging. All current SLE therapies rely on
immunosuppressive drugs for managing disease symptoms. Neutrolis’ founding team has deep understanding
on the role of Neutrophil Extracellular Traps (NETs) in inflammatory and autoimmune conditions. NETs are
extracellular lattices of intact chromatin filaments decorated with toxic proteins. We and others, have
demonstrated that NETs bind autoantibodies and from pathological immune complexes in SLE. More recently,
we could identify the molecular mechanism how NETs are degraded in vivo. At Neutrolis, we develop biologics
that promote NET degradation and provide a non-immunosuppressive for the treatment of autoimmune and
inflammatory diseases, including SLE. We have identified a lead candidate, a Chromatinase™ that eliminates
the pathologic effects of NETs in animal models for acute diseases and SLE. In this research proposal, we aim
to characterize genetic mutations that cause reduced NET degradation in SLE patients with the goal to identify
and stratify patients who will benefit from the innovative Chromatinase™ therapy. Novel mutations will also be
explored and tested from 100 samples of SLE patients. Results from this project will enable us to move forward
to a SBIR Phase II, in which we will analyze additional 1,500 SLE patients to generate a comprehensive panel
of genetic markers, which promotes the development of Chromatinase™ towards clinical trials. The collected
and tested data will support Neutrolis clinical program for SLE and other autoimmune indications. Taken
together, we at Neutrolis have the expertise, platform, innovation and capabilities to execute the proposed project
successfully in a timely manner and when completed the product could be clinically important.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10010568
- **Project number:** 1R43AI152955-01
- **Recipient organization:** NEUTROLIS, INC.
- **Principal Investigator:** Tobias Fuchs
- **Activity code:** R43 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $251,744
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-05-01 → 2023-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10010568

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10010568, Genetic profiling of SLE patients with impaired NET degradation. (1R43AI152955-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10010568. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*