AI-168: Cardiovascular Disease

About: AI-168 is a novel combination drug candidate made up of a cannabinoid and an off-patent pharmaceutical ingredient. It is conceptualised to be a potential treatment for cardiovascular disease, including hypertension.

Immediate goal: to complete a broad range of state-of-the-art experimental techniques to assess AI-168. To identify a combination drug candidate capable of potentially outperforming established and widely accepted pharmaceutical drugs typically used to treat cardiovascular disease.

Research Partner: Dr Kristen Bubb at Department of Physiology, Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute and the Victorian Heart Institute research labs.

Next Steps: Clinical trials, subject to pre-clinical success and regulatory approvals.

  • Cardiovascular disease (CVD) refers to a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. It is a broad term that encompasses various conditions affecting the cardiovascular system. The cardiovascular system includes the heart, blood vessels (arteries, veins, and capillaries), and blood. The most common cardiovascular diseases include hypertension, pericarditis, myocarditis, coronary artery disease, heart failure, stroke and arrhythmias.

    Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a leading global health concern and is associated with a substantial portion of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality worldwide. Hypertension is a significant contributor to cardiovascular diseases. It is considered a major risk factor for conditions such as coronary artery disease, heart failure, stroke, and peripheral artery disease.

    According to Precedence Research, the global cardiovascular drugs markets size was accounted at USD 162.64 billion in 2022. Rapid modernization has increased the consumption of fast foods and unhealthy lifestyle practices which has booster the number of cases suffering with cardiovascular disorders. The lack of physical activity among the people as a result of busy schedule increases the rate of cardiovascular disorders. This leads to an increased demand and supply of essential cardiovascular drugs which prove to be life saving for many patients.

Principal Investigator

Dr Kristen Bubb

Dr Kristen Bubb holds a PhD in Physiology and leads the Translational Vascular Therapeutics Group, co-located in the Department of Physiology, Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute and the Victorian Heart Institute research labs in the Victorian Heart Hospital. Dr Bubb completed training at both Monash University and in at the William Harvey Research Institute in London, supported by a British Pharmacological Society International Fellowship in Clinical Pharmacology. Dr Bubb was then recruited to co-lead the Oxidative Signalling group at the Kolling Institute of Medical Research, University of Sydney, before returning to Monash in 2019 to develop her research program to identify novel therapeutic targets for cardiovascular diseases, with a focus on signalling molecules that interact with the vascular endothelium, to regulate vascular tone, integrity, and perfusion.