DeCure's autonomous Cardio AI scientist is researching a drug-repurposing hypothesis for ventricular septal defect — screening already-approved drugs against its 16-gene Open Targets disease module to publish open-access research. Research is fast; the path to publication is funded in milestone stages.
Disease moduleVentricular septal defect maps to a 16-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 ventricular septal defect 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
MYCN proto-oncogene, bHLH transcription factor (MYCN) — MYCN 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 adpdrag to rotate · scroll to zoom
RCSB Protein Data Bank · entry 5G1X · 1.72 Å · ligand ADENOSINE-5'-DIPHOSPHATE (ADP). Experimental structure, not a prediction.
What the evidence adds up to
Ventricular septal defect became amenable to surgical repair in the 1950s, and by 1958 the need to define indications for intervention was already recognised. A 2006 single-centre review of isolated ventricular septal defect management at The Children’s Hospital, Denver, covering patients seen in 2004 and 2005, noted that current practice was infrequently studied and that the evidence base for when or whether surgical repair is required remained unclear. A 2021 case report describes one of the first patients worldwide to survive 60 years after surgical VSD closure and then present again for surgery, illustrating that even after successful closure patients are subject to clinical deterioration over decades.
A 2005 review article summarises that ventricular septal defects are among the most common congenital heart diseases, and covers anatomic classification, pathophysiologic categories, clinical features, diagnostic tools (electrocardiography, chest radiography, echocardiography, cardiac catheterisation), and surgical indications for correction. No drug therapy is mentioned in any of these surgical and natural-history focused reports.
A 2017 genome-wide methylation study examined 84 case children with perimembranous ventricular septal defect and 196 control children using the Illumina HumanMethylation450 BeadChip. The analysis identified novel CpG loci, including one in PRDM16, which functions as a repressor of TGF-β signalling controlling tissue morphogenesis during cardiogenesis. At a 15% false-discovery rate, seven additional CpG loci were found. The authors state these findings provide novel insights into pathogenesis that may be of interest for future prediction and prevention, but no therapeutic application is reported.
What is still missing is any drug therapy for ventricular septal defect — the literature remains dominated by surgical closure and natural history. No randomised trials of medical treatment exist. The epigenetic findings from 2017 have not been translated into a preventive or therapeutic strategy. Funding for drug-repurposing studies in this condition is absent, and no trial design has been proposed to test a pharmacological intervention in patients with unrepaired or residual ventricular septal defect. Patient stratification based on methylation markers has not been attempted in a clinical setting.
Evidence
Retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works and resolved on OpenAlex — ranked by citations, including the results that did not work.
Circulation · 1958 · 75 citations
Ventricular Septal Defect in Infants and Children
AbstractNow that ventricular septal defect is amenable to surgical repair it is most important to define the indications for surgical intervention. In this paper the natural history of the disease and its clinical and physiologic characteristics are carefully detailed. These observations permit better recognition and understanding of the condition and offer a basis for comparison with results after surgery.
Cardiopulmonary medicine from imperial college press · 2005 · 49 citations
Ventricular Septal Defects
AbstractThis is a review article that summarizes updated information concerning isolated ventricular septal defects (VSD). VSD are one of the most common congenital heart diseases. It includes anatomic consideration and classification of the different types of VSD, pathophysiologic categories, clinical features and diagnostic tools such as electrocardiography, chest radiography, echocardiography and cardiac catheterization. We also reviewed the most important aspects of the therapeutic management, including surgical indications for correction of ventricular septal defects.
Genome-Wide Methylation Analysis Identifies Novel Cpg Loci For Perimembranous Ventricular Septal Defects In Human
AbstractAIM: Congenital heart diseases are the most common birth defects worldwide and leading cause of infant mortality. The perimembranous ventricular septal defect is most prevalent. Epigenetics may provide an underlying mechanism of the gene-environment interactions involved. MATERIALS & METHODS: We examined epigenome-wide DNA methylation using the Illumina HumanMethylation450 BeadChip in 84 case children and 196 control children. RESULTS: ). This was validated by bisulfite pyrosequencing. PRDM16 functions as a repressor of TGF-β signaling controlling tissue morphogenesis crucial during cardiogenesis. At 15% false-discovery rate, we identified seven additional CpG loci. CONCLUSION: These findings provide novel insights in the pathogenesis of perimembranous ventricular septal defect, which is of interest for future prediction and prevention.
Complete atrio-ventricular heart block, a not to be forgotten complication in transcatheter closure of perimembranous ventricular septal defect – a case report and review of literature
AbstractDevice occlusion of perimembranous ventricular septal defect is gaining popularity with the emergence of newer, softer occluders and improved technical know-how. We report a 26-year-old lady with a moderate size perimembranous ventricular septal defect who had a new onset of bundle branch block shortly after device closure. The patient subsequently developed a complete atrio-ventricular heart block.
AbstractAt this time, the current practice for treatment of patients with isolated ventricular septal defect is infrequently studied. With this in mind, it was our intent to assess the current management of ventricular septal defect at a single center, The Children's Hospital, Denver. We reviewed the practice at this institution to determine if there is an evidence base for when or if a patient with an isolated ventricular septal defect requires surgical repair. With approval from the Colorado Multiple Institutional Review Board (protocol # 06-0097), we reviewed the data on patients with isolated ventricular septal defect seen during the calendar years of 2004 and 2005, determining the state of the patients, and the level of intervention through December 31, 2005.
The Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeon · 2021 · 0 citations
Management of a Residual Ventricular Septal Defect 60 Years after One of the First Surgical Closures Worldwide
AbstractObjectives: Surgery for ventricular septal defect (VSD) was one of the first domains in the history of cardiac surgery. Although surgical closure of VSDs remained as the gold standard treatment of those patients, however, they are subjected to clinical deterioration over the following decades. We are presenting here one of the first patients operated upon worldwide. To our knowledge, this is the first case in literature surviving 60 years after surgical VSD closure and presenting again for surgery.
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.
