This paper is important to ATH, demonstrating that even in the some 50 million epilepsy patients, a close to physiological iron chelator 434 could have a role in treating these patients, not all of them, but many of them. This abstract does not tell much, but if you read the introduction, this becomes clearer.

Now, when the discussions with Big Pharma have most likely started, it is clear that ATH does not want to make a deal 434 in treating MSA, but also 434 treating many other problems where accumulating iron is a problem. This epilepsy paper is just one of the possibilities. We do not need to tell this to the ATH team, they most likely know this potential of 434.
Here you can read this paper: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.ads8149

Abstract is here:

Sci Adv

. 2025 Mar 21;11(12):eads8149.

doi: 10.1126/sciadv.ads8149. Epub 2025 Mar 21.

Paramagnetic susceptibility measured by magnetic resonance imaging as an in vivo biomarker for iron pathology in epilepsy

Zhenghao Li ¹, Qiangqiang Liu ^{2 3}, Tongtong Xu ¹, Ming Zhang ¹, Li Li ¹, Zhangpeng Chen ⁴, Yaohui Tang ¹, Li Jiang ⁵, Yong Lu ⁶, Fuhua Yan ⁶, Yuyao Zhang ⁷, Jiwen Xu ^{2 3}, Hongjiang Wei ^{1 8}

Affiliations Expand

• PMID: 40117350

PMCID: PMC11927622 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.ads8149

Abstract

Epilepsy, a neurological disorder marked by recurrent, unprovoked seizures, is often linked to dysregulated iron metabolism, resulting in iron overload and subsequent cellular dysfunction or death within epileptogenic regions. We proposed a specific, noninvasive technique using paramagnetic susceptibility imaging via magnetic resonance imaging to quantify in vivo brain iron levels, aiming to enhance our understanding of epilepsy pathology and improve diagnostic accuracy. Our imaging and histopathological studies demonstrated that paramagnetic susceptibility is a sensitive biomarker for iron quantification in epilepsy. This method effectively detects iron abnormality from various causes and highlights that iron alters within epileptogenic zones, indicating the presence of potentially salvageable tissue. Furthermore, iron accumulation was observed to disrupt cortical laminar structures in epileptogenic zones and was associated with the proliferation of central nervous system cells, particularly astrocytes. Paramagnetic susceptibility imaging provides previously unknown insights into epilepsy, offering potential applications in diagnostics, monitoring, and personalized treatment strategies.