DeCure's autonomous Cardio AI scientist is researching a drug-repurposing hypothesis for essential hypertension — screening already-approved drugs against its 37-gene Open Targets disease module to publish open-access research. Research is fast; the path to publication is funded in milestone stages.
Disease moduleEssential hypertension maps to a 37-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 essential hypertension 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
lipoprotein(a) (LPA) — LPA 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 2sdrag to rotate · scroll to zoom
RCSB Protein Data Bank · entry 8TCE · 1.07 Å · ligand (2S)-3-phenyl-2-[(3R)-pyrrolidin-3-yl]propanoic acid (HWF). Experimental structure, not a prediction.
What the evidence adds up to
The 2004 NICE guidelines recommend combination drug treatment for essential hypertension, replacing the earlier practice of switching from one single antihypertensive drug to another when blood pressure was not adequately controlled. This recommendation followed a review of the evidence base. The guidelines do not specify which drug classes should be combined, nor do they report numerical outcomes such as blood pressure reductions or event rates.
Earlier reviews from 1962 and 1975 state that drug therapy for essential hypertension was already established and capable of controlling hypertension in almost every patient requiring treatment. The 1975 review lists diuretics as primary therapy, with sympathoplegic agents, peripheral vasodilators and beta blockers as adjunctive options. It also mentions fixed-dose combinations. The 1962 paper emphasises that careful evaluation of patient factors is necessary before starting long-term therapy, and that these factors largely determine the value and success of any drug programme.
A 1963 paper divides patients with essential hypertension into four groups: those most likely to benefit from treatment, those with a reasonable chance to benefit, those with indefinite indications, and those in whom blood pressure reduction may actually be harmful. It discusses various hypotensive therapies, including drug combinations and low-sodium diets. No numerical outcomes are provided in any of these abstracts.
What is still missing from this historical record is any randomised trial comparing combination therapy directly against sequential monotherapy with modern drugs, any data on hard endpoints such as stroke or myocardial infarction from the 2004 guideline change, and any patient stratification that would identify which individuals are in the group where blood pressure reduction might be harmful.
Evidence
Retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works and resolved on OpenAlex — ranked by citations, including the results that did not work.
BMJ · 2004 · 5 citations · open access
NICE sets out guidelines for hypertension
AbstractCombination drug treatment should be used to treat hypertension, recommends the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) in its latest guidelines on the diagnosis and management in primary care of essential hypertension in adults.
Previously patients would be given one antihypertensive drug, and if this failed to control their blood pressure adequately they would be taken off that drug and given an antihypertensive from another class.
However, after a review of the evidence base, …
AbstractDrug therapy for essential hypertension is now firmly established. Agents presently available, if used wisely, are capable of controlling hypertension in almost every patient requiring such treatment. There are certain important factors which must be carefully evaluated before patients are started on long‐term antihypertensive therapy. Since these factors in large measure determine the value and predicate the success of any drug therapy program, it is essential that they be thoroughly explored and understood at the outset.
American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy · 1975 · 2 citations
Pharmacotherapy of Essential Hypertension
AbstractPractical clinical aspects of the evaluation and treatment of essential hypertension are reviewed. Drug therapy discussed includes diuretics, and as adjunctive therapy, sympathoplegic agents, peripheral vasodilators and beta blockers. Also covered are treatment of less common forms of essential hypertension, other forms of antihypertensive therapy, and the use of fixed combinations of antihypertensive drugs.
Indications for Treatment and Present-Day Drug Therapy in Essential Hypertension
AbstractPatients with essential hypertension can be divided into four groups: those who are most likely to benefit from treatment, those with a reasonable chance to benefit, those in whom indications for treatment are indefinite, and those in whom a reduction in blood pressure may actually be harmful. Various kinds of hypotensive therapy, including the combination of drugs and low-sodium diet, are discussed.
Methods of Information in Medicine · 1962 · 0 citations
The Evaluation of Therapeutic Procedures used in the Management of Essential Hypertension
AbstractThe nature of essential hypertension, its pathogenesis and the disturbances which it induces are reviewed as a basis for an evaluation of the procedures and drugs used in the treatment of this common disorder. The therapeutic measures now available aim at lowering the blood pressure which is only one manifestation of hypertensive disease but fail to counteract the fundamental disturbance responsible for the disorder except in the small group of patients amenable to surgical correction. The procedures used in the experimental evaluation of the blood-pressure-reducing effects of drugs and other measures are outlined and the sources of error in such evaluations are emphasized. The methods now available for the management of essential hypertensionare outlined and their inadequacies 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.
