A high percentage of the ~ 500,000 children born prematurely each year in the US require intravenous feeding after birth because they do not tolerate oral feeding. This is accomplished with a total parenteral nutrition (TPN) solution, which is prepared from component solutions: small and large volume parenterals (SVPs and LVPs). Aluminum (Al) is a common contaminant in some SVPs, particularly calcium gluconate solution. Excessive Al can produce toxicity to the skeletal system and brain, and perhaps the liver. The potential for Al toxicity is significantly greater in humans, such as premature infants, who have reduced renal function;because the kidneys excrete Al. Medical personnel who care for neonates have suggested for decades that the Al in these solutions needs to be greatly decreased to avoid Al-induced toxicity. The FDA implemented a labeling requirement for these component solutions that sets a maximum Al concentration in LVPs and requires a statement of the maximum Al concentration in SVPs at expiry. This merely documents estimated maximum Al concentration. It is not the actual Al concentration nor does this reduce the Al in SVPs. Based on prior work to develop new chemicals that bind Al (chelators), the long- term objective is to develop a flow-through filter device containing a chelator that is immobilized on small polymer beads to remove Al from solutions. Based on results obtained using computational chemistry, which predicted the strength of binding of novel immobilized chelators with Al, and results obtained before and during the Phase I award from novel chelators we have synthesized, it is proposed to advance the lead resin (a chelator immobilized on a resin bead), and develop prototype devices containing the lead resin, and test these devices for their efficacy to remove Al from calcium gluconate solution and their safety. We will then assess the safety and efficacy of the resultant optimized device in a pre-clinical proof- of-principle piglet model of the neonate, receiving TPN. The results will position this project to advance to Phase III, in which the resin and device will be manufactured under cGMP conditions and the device tested in a clinical proof-of-principle study in neonates receiving TPN in a neonatal intensive care unit.
The proposed work will advance the lead resin (immobilized chelator) and develop and test prototype devices to contain the resin, to create a medical device to remove a toxic contaminant, aluminum (Al), from intravenous solutions. This device will be tested in a pre- clinical proof-of-principle study in an animal model of the neonate receiving intravenous feeding. This will remove the potential for Al to produce toxicity to premature infants and other patients who are exposed to Al through intravenous fluids, solving a decades-old problem that has escaped resolution to date.
