NsG33 (also known as Meteorin) is a novel neurotrophic protein discovered in the NsGene Factor program with protective and regenerative effects on the central and peripheral nervous systems. Several molecular tools such as recombinant protein, polyclonal antibodies and lentiviral vectors have been generated to be able to study this novel therapeutic factor in detail. In mouse primary ventral mesencephalon (VM) cultures, Meteorin has been shown to increase the number of neurons compared to normal growth medium.
The presence of Meteorin specifically increases the number of dopaminergic cells and the level of Dopamine (the cells and associated signaling substance lost in Parkinson’s disease). The effect on the dopaminergic system has been supported by experiments with immortalised human VM cell lines, where the presence of Meteorin increased the number of dopaminergic neurons by 2-3 fold. In parallel with the studies on the dopaminergic system, the therapeutic effects of Meteorin are being evaluated in several predictive cell culture systems and animal models for neurological disorders.
NsG34
Together with NsG33, another novel factor named NsG34 (Meteorin-like) constitutes a family of well conserved secreted factors. In a similar manner to NsG33, NsGene has generated molecular tools to explore the therapeutic potential of NsG34. Preliminary exploratory studies indicate that NsG34 is a very potent neurotrophic factor having characteristics with distinct therapeutic potential.
