SAN JOSE, Calif., June 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Anixa Biosciences,
Inc. (NASDAQ: ANIX), a biotechnology company focused on the
treatment, prevention, and diagnosis of cancer and infectious
diseases, today announced that the Company, together with partner
OntoChem GmbH, has synthesized four potential Covid-19 compounds
that will advance to biological assay testing. Anixa and
OntoChem announced their partnership on April 20, 2020
(https://ir.anixa.com/press-releases/detail/947/) and announced
discovery of its first potential Covid-19 candidate two weeks later
on May 4, 2020.
The initial phase of this program was designed to screen
approximately 1.2 billion chemical compounds, utilizing in
silico methods, against two specific enzymes of
SARS-CoV-2. As the computer-based screening identified
potential compounds, they would be synthesized and tested in
biological assays to evaluate their potency as predicted by the
molecular modeling algorithms. Should the biological activity
be verified, the compounds will be tested in animal studies to
further evaluate their candidacy as Covid-19 therapeutics.
Assuming animal studies are successful, the compound or compounds
can be readied for human testing.
Dr. Amit Kumar, President and CEO
of Anixa Biosciences, stated, "When we announced our strategic
collaboration with OntoChem, we committed to providing frequent
updates regarding the progress of our research, because Covid-19 is
such an acute public health and economic problem. Therefore,
we are pleased to announce that since identifying a lead molecule,
we have further identified three similar analog compounds.
These molecules target a viral protein, an endoribonuclease, that
helps the virus process its genetic material during viral
replication. Before the endoribonuclease can function
properly, it needs to interact with a human protein in the infected
human cell. Our in silico molecular modeling indicates
that any of these four molecules might disrupt the ability of the
viral endoribonuclease to interact with the human protein. If
this is confirmed in our biological testing, we believe the
molecules should inhibit the viral replication process and retard
the infection."
Dr. Lutz Weber, President and CEO
of OntoChem, stated, "While we continue to screen the full
libraries of compounds, we are pleased that our efforts have
rapidly identified four compounds. These compounds have been
synthesized and we are now engaged in testing these compounds in
biological assays to verify the efficacy that was predicted in
silico."
Dr. Kumar continued, "We hope to provide an update regarding the
biological testing as soon as we have completed the tests.
One of the tests is a viral replication test that utilizes active
SARS-CoV-2 virus. This test must be performed in a Biological
Safety Level 3 laboratory to maintain safety and confinement."
Dr. Kumar continued, "While we are making incredibly rapid
progress in our discovery efforts and hope to continue the pace of
research, it's important to note that we are in the early stages of
the program."
About Anixa Biosciences, Inc.
Anixa is a
publicly-traded biotechnology company developing a number of
programs addressing cancer and infectious disease. Anixa's
therapeutic portfolio includes a cancer vaccine technology focused
on the immunization against α-Lactalbumin to prevent triple
negative breast cancer (TNBC), a cancer immunotherapy program which
uses a novel type of CAR-T, known as chimeric endocrine receptor
T-cell (CER-T) technology, and a Covid-19 therapeutics program
focused on inhibiting certain viral protein function. The
company's diagnostic portfolio consists of Cchek™, a liquid biopsy
technology for early detection of solid tumors based on the body's
immune response to the presence of a malignancy. Anixa
continually examines emerging technologies in complementary fields
for further development and commercialization. Additional
information is available at www.anixa.com.
Forward-Looking Statements: Statements
that are not historical fact may be considered forward-looking
statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are not
statements of historical facts, but rather reflect Anixa's current
expectations concerning future events and results. We
generally use the words "believes," "expects," "intends," "plans,"
"anticipates," "likely," "will" and similar expressions to identify
forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements,
including those concerning our expectations, involve risks,
uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond our
control, which may cause our actual results, performance or
achievements, or industry results, to be materially different from
any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or
implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks,
uncertainties and factors include, but are not limited to, those
factors set forth in "Item 1A - Risk Factors" and other sections of
our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K as well as in our
Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K.
We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise, except as required by law. You
are cautioned not to unduly rely on such forward-looking statements
when evaluating the information presented in this press
release.
Anixa contact:
Mike Catelani
mcatelani@anixa.com
408-708-9808
Tiberend Strategic Advisors, Inc.
Miriam Miller (Investors)
mmiller@tiberend.com
212-375-2694
Johanna Bennett (Media)
jbennett@tiberend.com
212-375-2686
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SOURCE Anixa Biosciences, Inc.