The 2025/26 Autumn Term Cardiac Function Seminar series talks will be back on Thursday 02nd October 2025 when we will be welcoming Professor Nathan Palpant, University of Queensland, Australia.
Talk Title: A RaPID approach to accelerate peptide drugs for heart disease
Talk Time: 12:30 – 13:30 UK time
Location: Hybrid Meeting (Hybrid – online Via Teams and Meeting room 427/428 4th Floor ICTEM, Hammersmith Campus, Du Cane Road W12 0NN
Please note the seminar organizers and the Head of Section would like to request that attendees will in the majority of cases be physically present in the seminar room and a participation via Teams shall be the exception.
Short Bio:
Professor Nathan Palpant is a Group Leader at The University of Queensland’s Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB). After PhD training at the University of Michigan and a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Washington’s Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, he established his independent research group at the IMB in 2015. His research program focuses on studying mechanisms of cardiovascular development and disease, drawing on interdisciplinary approaches in stem cell biology, genetics and genomics, and drug discovery. He has particular interest in developing cell type agnostic models of genome regulation to gain insights into molecular regulation of cell identity in health and disease. Dr. Palpant is a Heart Foundation Fellow and has received numerous awards including the International Society for Heart Research Young Investigator Award, the Lorne Genome Millennium Science Award, and the Australian Cardiovascular Alliance Excellence in Cardiovascular Research Translation Award. Dr Palpant is also co-founder of Infensa Bioscience which aims to develop ASIC1a inhibitors as first-in-class therapeutics for ischemic heart disease and stroke.
Talk Description:
Ischaemic heart disease and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) represent distinct but devastating cardiac pathologies with limited therapeutic options targeting their underlying molecular drivers. In this seminar, I will present two translational research programs focusing on a novel peptide discovery platform that has identified drug candidates for addressing key areas of need in cardiovascular therapeutics. First, TL01 is a first-in-class macrocyclic peptide that modulates the cardiac troponin complex to treat HCM. Developed using a customized RaPID screening platform that enriches for peptides stabilizing protein-protein interactions, TL01 uniquely targets sarcomeric hyperactivity without impairing physiological contractile reserve, offering a mechanistically differentiated alternative to current myosin inhibitors. The second focus is our ASIC1a inhibitor program, addressing a major unmet need in acute cardioprotection. ASIC1a is a proton-gated ion channel activated by ischemia-induced acidosis and identified as a central mediator of cardiomyocyte death. Using both venom-derived peptide libraries and the RaPID system, we developed highly selective and potent ASIC1a inhibitors. These compounds demonstrate robust efficacy in preclinical models of myocardial infarction, ischemia-reperfusion injury, and heart transplantation, including preservation of function in donor hearts exposed to prolonged warm ischemia. Hi1a is now positioned for clinical translation, with demonstrated safety, cardiac specificity, and pharmacokinetic properties compatible with emergency and perioperative use. Collectively, these therapeutic pipelines illustrate how precision peptide engineering can identify new strategies for treating both chronic and acute forms of heart disease.
If you are joining online and you have not yet signed up to join the Cardiac Function Seminar Team group in order to participate in the seminar online please register via the linked tab or here which will provide access to the Team.
Please do this ahead of time of the talk.
The Cardiac Function Seminar Team
(Prof. Thomas Brand, Natasha Richmond)