OSLO, Norway, Feb. 10, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Targovax ASA
(OSE: TRVX), a clinical stage immuno-oncology company developing
immune activators to target hard-to-treat solid tumors, today
announces that it has entered into a research collaboration
agreement with Papyrus Therapeutics to assess the potential of
combining their respective proprietary technology platforms to
develop a first-in-class oncolytic virus concept with RTK inhibitor
functionality.
Papyrus Therapeutics, Inc. (West
Chester, PA, USA) is an emerging biopharma company
developing novel tumor suppressor therapies. Papyrus's lead
therapeutic is a modified, recombinant version of Opioid Binding
Protein/Cell Adhesion Molecule-like (OPCML), which is an
extra-cellular, upstream regulator of RTK activity. OPCML is a
broadly acting tumor suppressor that is epigenetically silenced in
many cancers, leading to tumor invasion and metastasis through
deregulation of apoptosis, epithelial-to-mesenchymal
transition (EMT) and cellular migration. Classic RTK inhibition
using small molecules has proven highly effective in many cancers,
but treatment resistance remains a significant challenge. Delivery
of OPCML can overcome this challenge by reconstituting normal RTK
signaling in the tumor.
Under the agreement, Targovax and Papyrus will run a joint
pre-clinical research project to evaluate the technical feasibility
and anti-cancer activity of combining the ONCOS oncolytic virus
platform and recombinant OPCML technology. Targovax retains an
exclusive option to develop and commercialize novel ONCOS-OPCML
drug candidates emerging from the pre-clinical research
collaboration.
Dr. Paul Blake, Co-Founder and
Chief Executive Officer of Papyrus Therapeutics said: "We
are excited by the potential of including our modified, recombinant
OPCML with the clinically validated ONCOS platform, thereby
extending the scope of our tumor suppression strategy to adenoviral
gene therapy. Targovax has demonstrated the broad immunomodulatory
power of their oncolytic immunotherapy in a variety of solid
tumors, and we believe this serves as an ideal environment to
reconstitute the extra-cellular tumor suppressor capabilities of
OPCML".
Dr. Victor Levitsky, Chief
Scientific Officer of Targovax added: "The tumor deploys
two core strategies to avoid detection by the immune system and to
enable it to grow and spread; local immunosuppression and
inhibition of biochemical processes that prevent cellular migration
and invasion into surrounding healthy tissue. By combining ONCOS
and OPCML we can deal with both of these issues in parallel, and
thereby establish a first-in-class immunotherapy concept that
couples the power of oncolytic adenoviruses with the clinically
validated principle of RTK inhibition."
CONTACT:
For further information, please contact:
Renate Birkeli, Investor
Relations
Phone: +47 922 61 624
Email: renate.birkeli@targovax.com
Media enquires:
Andreas Tinglum - Corporate
Communications (Norway)
Phone: +47 9300 1773
Email: andreas.tinglum@corpcom.no
IR enquires:
Kim Sutton Golodetz - LHA Investor
Relations (US)
Email: kgolodetz@lhai.com
Phone: +1 212-838-3777
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SOURCE Targovax