SAN JOSE, Calif., Feb. 12, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Anixa
Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: ANIX), a biotechnology company focused
on harnessing the body's immune system in the fight against cancer,
today announced that the research team lead by Dr. Jose Conejo-Garcia, Chair of the Department of
Immunology at Moffitt Cancer Center, Anixa's development partner,
has completed and validated the reformulation of the viral vector
necessary for its CAR-T program.
Last year, Anixa announced, that in order to improve the
potential efficacy of its CAR-T therapy, it would reformulate the
viral vector used to infect and engineer each individual patient's
T-cells. The purpose was to increase the expression level of
the Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) on the engineered,
autologous T-cells. With the successful viral vector
reformulation, verification and validation, the new viral
formulation is now being manufactured under Good Manufacturing
Practice (GMP) conditions. This manufacturing process is
expected to take approximately three months and Anixa and Moffitt
remain on track to file the Investigational New Drug (IND)
application in 2020.
CAR-T therapy requires the extraction and isolation of an
individual's T-cells, followed by engineering these cells to enable
them to more effectively kill cancer. These cells are then
expanded and reinfused into the patient. Engineering these
cells is performed by using a virus that itself has been
engineered. The engineered virus initially infects the
T-cells. Successive to infection, the virus induces the
cellular machinery of the patient's T-cell to create on its
surface, the "homing missiles" which in the case of Anixa's therapy
are FSH molecules. It is expected that a T-cell with more FSH
on the surface will be more effective at targeting ovarian
cancer.
Dr. Amit Kumar, President and CEO
of Anixa stated, "We are pleased to have completed this first
milestone in our development program and remain confident in our
previously stated development timeline."
"Our laboratory completed the reformulation of the viral vector,
and we have demonstrated its ability to increase the concentration
of FSH on the surface of transformed human T-cells. We expect
the increased expression of FSH to provide better efficacy of our
drug for ovarian cancer patients. We are looking forward to
taking this therapy into the clinic as soon as possible," stated
Dr. Conejo-Garcia.
About Anixa Biosciences, Inc.
Anixa is a
publicly-traded biotechnology company focused on harnessing the
body's immune system in the fight against cancer. Anixa's
therapeutic portfolio includes a cancer vaccine technology focused
on the immunization against α-Lactalbumin to prevent triple
negative breast cancer (TNBC), as well as a cancer immunotherapy
program which uses a novel type of CAR-T, known as chimeric
endocrine receptor T-cell (CER-T) technology. 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.