Patent ID: 11890328
Assignee: SILK TECHNOLOGIES, LTD.
Field: Pharmaceuticals (Chemistry)
Classification: CPC A  C | IPC A  C

Claim 0:
1. A method of treating dry eye syndrome in a subject comprising administering an effective amount of a protein composition to an eye of the subject, thereby treating the dry eye disease, wherein the protein composition is formulated as an ophthalmic formulation comprising water; wherein the protein composition is a fibroin-derived protein composition prepared by a process comprising heating an aqueous fibroin solution at an elevated pressure, wherein:
the aqueous fibroin solution comprises lithium bromide at a concentration of at least about 8M, and the aqueous fibroin solution is heated to at least about 105° C. (221° F.) under a pressure of about 10 PSI to about 20 PSI for at least about 20 minutes in the presence of the lithium bromide;
to provide a protein composition comprising fibroin-derived protein wherein:
the primary amino acid sequences of the fibroin-derived protein composition differ from native fibroin by at least by at least 4% with respect to the combined amino acid content of serine, glycine, and alanine, based on the combined absolute values of the differences in the content of serine, glycine, and alanine;
cysteine disulfide bonds between the fibroin heavy and fibroin light protein chains of fibroin are reduced or eliminated;
the protein composition has a serine content that is reduced by greater than 25% compared to native fibroin protein; and
wherein the average molecular weight of the fibroin-derived protein composition is less than about 100 kDa.