Nutritive fragments, proteins and methods

US9944681B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• AXCELLA HEALTH INC. · US

Inventors

• David Arthur Berry · Brookline, US
• Brett Adam Boghigian · Boston, US
• Nathaniel W. Silver · Cambridge, US
• Geoffrey von Maltzahn · Boston, US
• Rajeev Chillakuru · Cambridge, US
• Michael Hamill · Wellesley, US
• John F. Kramarczyk · Somerville, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Feb 10, 2017
• Grant date: Apr 17, 2018
• Expiry date: Feb 10, 2037

Classification

• Technology area (CPC A): Human Necessities
• CPC primary: A61K38/1709
• WIPO field: Pharmaceuticals
• WIPO sector: Chemistry

Abstract

Nutritive proteins are provided. In some embodiments the nutritive proteins comprise a first polypeptide sequence comprising a fragment of a naturally-occurring nutritive protein. In some embodiments the fragment comprises at least one of a) an enhanced ratio of branch chain amino acid residues to total amino acid residues present in the nutritive protein; b) an enhanced ratio of leucine residues to total amino acid residues present in the nutritive protein; and c) an enhanced ratio of essential amino acid residues to total amino acid residues present in the nutritive protein. In some embodiments, the fragment comprises at least one of a) a ratio of branch chain amino acid residues to total amino acid residues present in the nutritive protein; b) a ratio of leucine residues to total amino acid residues present in the nutritive protein; and c) a ratio of essential amino acid residues to total amino acid residues present in the nutritive protein, that is equal to or greater than the corresponding ratio present in a benchmark protein such as whey, egg or soy protein. Also provided are nucleic acids encoding the proteins, recombinant microorganisms that make the proteins, methods of ma…