SAN JOSE, Calif., Feb. 16, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Anixa
Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: ANIX), a biotechnology company focused
on the treatment and prevention of cancer and infectious diseases,
announced today that animal testing has commenced with two
proprietary compounds that have shown potency in in vitro
studies.
Dr. Amit Kumar, President and CEO
of Anixa Biosciences stated, "After screening billions of compounds
in silico, synthesizing dozens and testing them in
biological assays, we have identified two of the most promising for
further testing in animal models. These two compounds will be
tested in animals and will be compared to Remdesivir, which is the
only anti-viral drug approved for Covid-19. We expect this
proof of concept study to be completed in a few weeks."
Dr. Kumar added, "Our vision for these potential drugs is that
they can be taken orally in an outpatient setting before symptoms
become severe enough for hospitalization. Additionally, since
these compounds target functional enzymes of the virus, we do not
expect the new spike protein variants to be able to evade the drug,
like they may evade vaccines. While we are pleased that there
are effective vaccines against the virus, we feel as the virus
continues to adapt to human hosts, new variants will emerge.
There is no way to predict if and when a variant will appear that
renders one or more vaccines ineffective. Therefore, we
believe that potent and easily administered therapeutics will
always be necessary to battle this disease."
One of the compounds being tested targets an enzyme called an
endoribonuclease, and the other compound targets the enzyme known
as the main protease, Mpro. Upon demonstration of
potency in animals with one of these compounds, Anixa and
collaboration partner OntoChem GmbH will have medicinal chemistry
performed to optimize the potency before commencing comprehensive
animal studies in anticipation of human clinical trials.
"These compounds were designed to specifically target the
enzymes of SARS-CoV-2, but we feel that these compounds may also be
active against other corona viruses, as well as many of the new
variants that are emerging and will continue to emerge," stated Dr.
Lutz Weber, CEO of
OntoChem.
About Anixa Biosciences, Inc.
Anixa is a
publicly-traded biotechnology company developing a number of
programs addressing cancer and infectious disease. Anixa's
therapeutics portfolio includes 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 vaccine portfolio includes a vaccine to prevent
breast cancer, and specifically triple negative breast cancer
(TNBC), the most deadly form of the disease, and a vaccine to
prevent ovarian cancer. These vaccine technologies focus on
immunizing against specific proteins that have been found to be
expressed in certain forms of cancer. 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.
Investor contact:
Mike Catelani
mcatelani@anixa.com
408-708-9808
Media contact:
Sherry Ash
anixapress@gmail.com
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SOURCE Anixa Biosciences, Inc.