TIDMPRTC
PureTech Health PLC
11 April 2017
11 April 2017
PureTech Health plc
PureTech Health Advances New Programme Targeting
Immunosuppressive Gamma Delta T Cells and Related Mechanisms
Adds to PureTech Health's growing immunology pipeline
Underlying science published in leading journals, including Cell
and Nature Medicine
PureTech Health plc ("PureTech Health" or the "Company", LSE:
PRTC), an advanced, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, today
announced the launch of a new immuno-oncology programme developing
monoclonal antibodies to target newly discovered immunosuppressive
mechanisms in pancreatic cancer and other solid tumours.
The approach is based on the work of Dr. George Miller, Director
of S. Arthur Localio Laboratories and Director of the Cancer
Immunology Program at NYU School of Medicine. Part of the body of
data supporting this approach was published recently in Nature
Medicine and builds upon his work previously published in Cell.
"Most solid, malignant tumours establish an immunosuppressive
environment to ward off the body's natural defences. Dr. Miller's
work in pancreatic ductal carcinoma has revealed that inflammatory
processes drive the immunosuppression through certain gamma delta T
cells and macrophages," said Dr. Joseph Bolen, Chief Scientific
Officer of PureTech Health. "Our novel approach builds on this
finding and selectively disrupts the immunosuppression to
potentially have a therapeutic effect on cancer."
This technology, exclusively licensed from the NYU School of
Medicine, is being developed in a new subsidiary of PureTech Health
called Nybo Therapeutics. Nybo builds on PureTech's strength in
immunology and joins PureTech's advanced pipeline of immunology and
T cell biology programs that includes a Phase IIB immunosenescence
program, microbiome-based T cell mediated therapies, and CAR-T
therapies.
"Pancreatic cancer is the only major cancer with a five-year
survival rate in the single digits, and there has been far too
little progress towards meaningful treatments," said Dr. Diane
Simeone, Director of the Pancreatic Cancer Center at NYU School of
Medicine and a member of Nybo's Scientific Advisory Board. "Novel
therapeutic approaches are important to pursue, and I look forward
to helping advance this promising technology."
Dr. Miller commented on this announcement, "I am excited to
translate our findings into first-in-class therapies for patients
who desperately need new treatment options. Our work on
immunosuppressive mechanisms in pancreatic cancer has shed light on
new therapeutic approaches that form the foundation for Nybo, and
we look forward to a great partnership with PureTech Health with
whom to advance these findings."
PureTech Health has gathered a group of leading expert
collaborators and advisors around this platform, including:
Erin Adams, Ph.D., is the Joseph Regenstein Professor at the
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and on the
Committees of Immunology and Cancer Biology at the University of
Chicago. Dr. Adams' research is focused on understanding how events
at the molecular level allow the immune system to differentiate
between self and non-self with particular attention given to
nonconventional T cell recognition, such as that of gamma delta T
cells. The scientific approach she undertakes to tackle these
questions spans multiple levels including genetics, protein
biochemistry, structure, biophysics, function and cell biology and
imaging. Dr. Adams is one of the pioneer researchers discovering
how gamma delta T cells recognize antigens and how this recognition
process regulates their activity in various tissues in which they
reside.
Elizabeth Jaffee, M.D., currently serves as Deputy Director for
the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, Associate Director of the
Bloomberg-Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy; Associate
Director for Translational Research, Co-Director of
Gastrointestinal cancer and diseases program, and Co-Director of
the Skip Viragh Center for Pancreatic Cancer Clinical Research and
Patient Care. Dr. Jaffee is chair and member of the National Cancer
Advisory Board, and served as co-chair of the NCI Blue Ribbon Panel
for the National Moonshot Initiative. Dr. Jaffee is an active
member of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), and
has just been named President-Elect of AACR (2017-2018). She will
assume the presidency in April, 2018.
Steven Leach, M.D., is the Director of the David M. Rubenstein
Center for Pancreatic Cancer Research of Memorial Sloan-Kettering.
Prior to this, Dr. Leach served as Professor of Surgery, Oncology
and Cell Biology, and the Paul K. Neumann Professor in Pancreatic
Cancer at Johns Hopkins Medicine. Dr. Leach received his
undergraduate degree from Princeton University, where he currently
serves on the Board of Trustees. He then pursued his MD degree at
Emory University, followed by postdoctoral training at Yale
University and at M.D. Anderson. Dr. Leach is also the current
Chair of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network's Scientific and
Medical Advisory Board.
George Miller, M.D., is the Director of S. Arthur Localio
Laboratories, vice chair for research in NYU, Langone's Department
of Surgery and the leader of Perlmutter Cancer Center's Immunology
Program, as well as the director of the only training program in
the country in gastrointestinal oncology that is funded by the
National Institutes of Health. In addition to his laboratory
research, Dr. Miller is a highly experienced pancreatic and
hepatobiliary surgeon with an extensive background in the
evaluation and treatment of pancreatic tumors, as well as liver,
bile duct cancers.
Diane M. Simeone, M.D., is currently the director of the
Pancreatic Cancer Center at the NYU School of Medicine and the
Associate Director of Translational Research, Perlmutter Cancer
Center, NYU Langone Medical Center. She is the chair-elect of the
Scientific and Medical Advisory Board of the Pancreatic Cancer
Action Network, one of the country's leading organizations
advancing the battle against the disease through research funding,
community engagement and government advocacy. She is a member of
the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences,
serves on the National Cancer Institute's Pancreatic Cancer Task
Force, and previously was president of the Society of University
Surgeons and the American Pancreatic Association.
"We will be exploring both pancreatic cancer and other solid
tumour types such as colorectal cancer. In addition to monotherapy,
Dr. Miller's work suggests that this approach may enhance the
effect of checkpoint inhibitors that have historically not worked
in pancreatic cancer opening up the possibility of combination
therapy," commented Dr. Aleksandra Filipovic, Therapeutic Lead for
Oncology at PureTech.
The underlying research described above has been supported by
the NYU School of Medicine's drug discovery accelerator, the Office
of Therapeutics Alliances.
About NYU Office of Therapeutics Alliances and Office of
Industrial Liaison
The NYU Office of Therapeutics Alliances (OTA) was created in
2013 to accelerate and de-risk drug discovery projects developed at
NYU School of Medicine towards partnerships with investors,
biopharma, and non-profits. The NYU Office of Industrial Liaison
(OIL) promotes the commercial development of NYU discoveries and
actively seeks commercial partners for licensing and research
collaborations. Over the past ten years NYU has ranked first among
all universities in income from technology licensing. For more
information, please visit http://www.nyulmc.org/ota and
http://oil.med.nyu.edu/.
About Nybo Therapeutics
Nybo Therapeutics, a subsidiary of PureTech Health (LSE: PRTC),
is developing first-in-class immuno-oncology programs dedicated to
the targeting of immune-suppressive gamma delta T cells and other
related mechanisms in pancreatic cancer and other solid tumours. It
aims to address the great unmet need in malignancies with dismal
prognoses that derive little benefit from current standards of
care.
PureTech Health plc (PRTC.L) owns approximately 93.5% of the
company on a diluted basis as of 11 April 2017. This calculation
includes issued and outstanding shares as well as options to
purchase shares and written commitments to issue shares or options,
but excludes unallocated shares authorised to be issued pursuant to
equity incentive plans.
About PureTech Health
PureTech Health (PureTech Health plc, PRTC.L) is an advanced,
clinical-stage biopharmaceutical Company developing novel medicines
that modulate the adaptive human systems. PureTech's therapies
target the dysfunctions in the immune, nervous, and
gastro-intestinal systems by addressing the underlying
pathophysiology of disease from a systems perspective rather than
through a single receptor or pathway. The Company is advancing a
rich pipeline that includes multiple human proof-of-concept studies
and pivotal or registration studies expected to read out over the
next 12-18 months. PureTech Health's growing research and
development pipeline has been developed in collaboration with some
of the world's leading scientific experts, who along with
PureTech's experienced team and a stellar Board identify, analyse
and advance very selectively the opportunities the Company believes
hold the most promise for patients. This experienced and engaged
team places PureTech Health at the forefront of ground-breaking
science and technological innovation and leads the Company between
and beyond existing disciplines. For more information, visit
www.puretechhealth.com or connect with us on Twitter
@puretechh.
Forward Looking Statement
This press release contains statements that are or may be
forward-looking statements, including statements that relate to the
company's future prospects, developments and strategies. The
forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and
are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could
cause actual results, performance and achievements to differ
materially from current expectations, including, but not limited
to, those risks and uncertainties described in the risk factors
included in the regulatory filings for PureTech Health plc. These
forward-looking statements are based on assumptions regarding the
present and future business strategies of the company and the
environment in which it will operate in the future. Each
forward-looking statement speaks only as at the date of this press
release. Except as required by law and regulatory requirements,
neither the company nor any other party intends to update or revise
these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise.
# # #
For further information:
PureTech Health FTI Consulting
Allison Mead Ben Atwell, Matthew
+1 617 651 3156 Cole, Rob Winder
amead@puretechhealth.com +44 (0) 20 3727 1000
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
NRABCGDSRXBBGRG
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 11, 2017 02:01 ET (06:01 GMT)
Puretech Health (LSE:PRTC)
Historical Stock Chart
From Jun 2024 to Jul 2024
Puretech Health (LSE:PRTC)
Historical Stock Chart
From Jul 2023 to Jul 2024