DeCure's autonomous Rare AI scientist is researching a drug-repurposing hypothesis for corneal disease — screening already-approved drugs against its 34-gene Open Targets disease module to publish open-access research. Research is fast; the path to publication is funded in milestone stages.
Disease moduleCorneal disease maps to a 34-gene Open Targets module — the target space DeCure's AI scientist screens approved drugs against.
DeCure.ai methodSignature reversal (LINCS) plus network proximity (STRING) rank already-approved drugs likely to perturb this module — the same engine that produces DeCure.ai's repurposing hypotheses.
Repurposing thesisScreening approved medicines against this disease module, then publishing the evidence for the strongest candidate. Known pharmacology and human exposure data make the first question sharper — they do not establish safety or efficacy in a new indication.
Research record
01
ResearchComing soon
Candidate research + dossier — target rationale, drug-repurposing thesis and evidence pack.proof: Published dossier + on-chain hash
02
ValidationComing soon
In-vitro biological validation at a contract research org (CRO).proof: CRO contract + in-vitro report
03
Peer review & paperComing soon
Peer-reviewed paper published open-access (preprint + journal).proof: DOI + open-access link + on-chain hash
Current lead
No approved-drug candidate for corneal disease is corroborated in the literature DeepSearch retrieved. Some conditions are managed with non-pharmacological care — a device, surgery or physical therapy — rather than a medicine; that may be the case here, or the literature we found may simply be too sparse yet to support a drug-repurposing angle.
Molecular view
endoplasmic reticulum aminopeptidase 1 (ERAP1) — ERAP1 is one of the genes genetically linked to this disease in Open Targets — shown as context, not as a drug target we're pursuing: no approved-drug candidate for this disease is yet corroborated in the literature we found.
Loading structure…
helix sheet pgedrag to rotate · scroll to zoom
RCSB Protein Data Bank · entry 6RQX · 1.68 Å · ligand TRIETHYLENE GLYCOL (PGE). Experimental structure, not a prediction.
What the evidence adds up to
A 2019 case report describes a 52-year-old woman with Sjögren’s syndrome-related keratopathy who received an off-label intravitreal fluocinolone acetonide implant (190 µg) in one eye after recurrent corneal perforations required multiple penetrating keratoplasties and amniotic membrane transplants in both eyes. Over six months of follow-up after the implant and a subsequent penetrating keratoplasty, no further surgical interventions were needed in the treated eye, and the corneal surface remained stable with normal intraocular pressure. During the same period, the fellow eye required two further penetrating keratoplasties, one vitrectomy, and five amniotic membrane transplants for relapsing keratolysis and perforations. This is a single case, not a controlled trial, and the follow-up is only six months.
A 2022 retrospective study from a tertiary hospital in Sokoto, Nigeria, reviewed 8641 eye clinic patients and found 352 (4.1%) had corneal disorders, with a mean age of 39 years. Infectious keratitis was the most common aetiology, followed by trauma, while bullous keratopathy was the least common. The authors state that most causes are avoidable and that public health prevention programmes are likely the most cost-effective approach to reducing these disorders. No treatment outcomes or drug interventions were reported in this study.
A 2015 summary of genetic work on monogenic corneal diseases reports that genotyping all patients at a tertiary referral centre allowed clinicians to distinguish phenotypes of closely related dystrophies, identify a small number of previously misclassified patients, and refer some with important systemic associations for further management. Patients without changes in commonly associated genes were selected for further evaluation. The abstract gives no numbers on how many patients were reclassified or what clinical impact this had on treatment decisions.
What is still missing: randomised controlled trials of fluocinolone acetonide for corneal disease, longer follow-up data, and any evidence that genetic reclassification changes patient outcomes rather than just diagnostic labels. The Nigerian study highlights that basic public health measures are needed before drug repurposing can have an impact in settings where infectious keratitis and trauma dominate. No drug mentioned in these abstracts has been tested in a controlled trial for corneal disease.
Evidence
Retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works and resolved on OpenAlex — ranked by citations, including the results that did not work.
Archives of Ophthalmology · 1993 · 14 citations
Grayson's Diseases of the Cornea
AbstractThe first two editions of<i>Diseases of the Cornea</i>by Merrill and Grayson were widely acclaimed as the classic medical corneal texts of their day. The third edition by Arffa continues to provide the reader with a comprehensive, clear, and concise text of medical corneal disease. The text has 30 chapters with 584 illustrations, including 210 in color. Each chapter is preceded by an outline that provides the reader with an excellent overview of the information that can be found in that chapter. An exhaustive list of references follows each chapter, containing both historic and recent citations. Tables are generously provided to highlight information and to make it more accessible to the reader. Both the color and black-and-white photographs of common and rare diseases of the cornea and adnexa are very clear and enhance the text. Drawings are used judiciously to highlight important characteristics of the clinical photographs without distracting
Journal of Medical Case Reports · 2019 · 5 citations · open access
Fluocinolone acetonide intravitreal implant as a therapeutic option for severe Sjögren’s syndrome-related keratopathy: a case report
AbstractBACKGROUND: In this report, we present the results of a severe case of Sjögren's syndrome-related keratopathy after fluocinolone acetonide 190-μg intravitreal implant (Iluvien®; Alimera Sciences Inc.) therapy. CASE PRESENTATION: A 52-year-old Caucasian woman with Sjögren's syndrome secondary to autoimmune hepatitis and primary sclerosing cholangitis was admitted to our emergency department owing to bilateral corneal ulcers and corneal perforation in the left eye following exposure keratopathy in an artificially induced coma. Within the following months, recurrent fulminant keratolysis with perforations required multiple penetrating keratoplasties and amniotic membrane transplants in both eyes. With new signs of severe keratolysis, an intravitreal fluocinolone acetonide implant was injected off-label in the left eye, and a third penetrating keratoplasty was performed 2 weeks later. In the 6 months of follow-up after the last penetrating keratoplasty, no more surgical interventions were needed in the eye with the fluocinolone acetonide implant. The corneal surface remained stable, and intraocular pressure was normal. During this time frame, two further penetrating keratoplasties, one vitrectomy, and five amniotic membrane transplants were performed in the fellow eye owing to relapsing keratolysis and perforations. CONCLUSIONS: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of fluocinolone acetonide intravitreal therapy in a patient with corneal disease. In the 6-month follow-up period, no surgical intervention was needed in the eye with the fluocinolone acetonide implant, whereas further penetrating keratoplasties and amniotic membrane transplants were performed in the fellow eye. Intravitreal fluocinolone acetonide may be considered as a treatment option in severe cases of autoimmune corneal disease.
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) · 2022 · 1 citations · open access
Spectrum Of Corneal Disorders In A Tertiary Facility In Sokoto,north-west Nigeria
AbstractABSTACT Objective: To describe the pattern and causes of corneal disorders in Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto, Sokoto state.<br> Materials and Methods: A retrospective hospital-based study involving the review of the medical records of all patients that were diagnosed with any corneal disease between January 2017 and December 2019 in Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto was undertaken. The patients' demograhic data, place of residence, presenting visual acuity, final diagnosis, type of corneal lesion, and predisposing factors were recorded.<br> Results: There were a total of 8641 patients seen in the eye clinic during this period, of which 352 subjects (4.1%) had different forms of corneal disorders. The mean age of the participants was 39 (±17) years. Infectious keratitis was the commonest diagnosed aetiology of corneal disorders followed by trauma while bullous keratopathy was the least.<br> Conclusion: Most of the causes of corneal disorders in this study are avoidable, public health prevention programmes will appear to be the most cost-effective means of decreasing these disorders.
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) · 2022 · 0 citations · open access
Spectrum Of Corneal Disorders In A Tertiary Facility In Sokoto,north-west Nigeria
AbstractABSTACT Objective: To describe the pattern and causes of corneal disorders in Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto, Sokoto state.<br> Materials and Methods: A retrospective hospital-based study involving the review of the medical records of all patients that were diagnosed with any corneal disease between January 2017 and December 2019 in Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto was undertaken. The patients' demograhic data, place of residence, presenting visual acuity, final diagnosis, type of corneal lesion, and predisposing factors were recorded.<br> Results: There were a total of 8641 patients seen in the eye clinic during this period, of which 352 subjects (4.1%) had different forms of corneal disorders. The mean age of the participants was 39 (±17) years. Infectious keratitis was the commonest diagnosed aetiology of corneal disorders followed by trauma while bullous keratopathy was the least.<br> Conclusion: Most of the causes of corneal disorders in this study are avoidable, public health prevention programmes will appear to be the most cost-effective means of decreasing these disorders.
The impact of genetics on the clinical management of patients with monogenic corneal diseases
AbstractSummary Over the last decade there has been a major reassessment of the classification of inherited corneal disease. In this presentation I discuss our program to genotype all patients attending our tertiary referral center who have suspected monogenic corneal disease. This has enabled us to distinguish the phenotypes of several closely related dystrophies as well as identify a small number of patients who have previously been misclassified. Some patients with important systemic associations have been identified and referred for further investigation and management. Finally, patients without changes in the genes commonly associated with corneal dystrophy have been selected for further evaluation. The impact of this for clinical care will be discussed.
Disease module: DeepOracle (Open Targets). Structures: RDKit from PubChem SMILES. Literature: retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works (targeted per-candidate search), resolved on OpenAlex.
DeCure is a research and publication project, not medical advice and not a treatment. "DeCure for X" describes a research goal, not a claim that a cure exists. Backing a cure is a contribution to fund the research — it is not an investment, and confers no yield, royalty, equity or IP ownership. Papers are published open-access by the DeCure.ai DAO.
