Pharmaceutical Technology Editors

Bio-Rad Laboratories, a life science technology company, announced four new anti-pertuzumab antibodies on Jan. 31, 2022. These ready-made antibodies are designed to inhibit the binding of the drug to its goal, human epidermal development tissue 2 (HER2), which enables researchers to develop selective assays for bioanalysis and monitoring of pertuzumab and its biosimilars.

The HER2 protein is over-expressed in HER2-positive cancers, stopping cell development and proliferation. Pertuzumab and its biosimilars are designed to bind to this protein as a form of treatment for these cancers.

The new assays include monovalent form antibodies, which are appropriate for pharmacokinetic bridging enzyme-linked immunoassays. Additionally, there are human immunoglobulin G1 antibodies with various ranges of affinity, which can be used as a surrogate for constructive management.

“We’re constantly introducing new ranges of recombinant, monoclonal anti-idiotypic antibodies to assist researchers in creating strong strategies that ship reproducible and translatable outcomes,” stated Amanda Turner, Bio-Rad product supervisor, Life Science Group, in the press release.

 analysis functions, as well as for industrial providers offering 

 testing to assist preclinical and scientific drug growth.

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Bio-Rad’s four new antibodies will develop highly selective and sensitive assays for bioanalysis and drug monitoring of pertuzumab and its biosimilars.

Bio-Rad Launches Anti-Pertuzumab Antibodies

Gandeeva Therapeutics, a precision biotechnology company, announced that it had raised $40 million in Series A funding on Jan. 31, 2022. This funding will go toward research that uses Gandeeva’s artificial intelligence (AI)-driven cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) platform, which aims to accelerate the discovery, design, and development of novel precision medicines.

According to a company press release, cryo-EM, combines highly innovative technologies across biochemistry, structural biology, imaging, and machine learning to characterize protein–drug interactions at an atomic level. With this new funding, Gandeeva hopes to gain further insight into targeting protein functions.

“For decades, we have known that understanding the language by which proteins are folded and function in the native context of the cell is fundamental to deciphering biology. Altered protein function is implicated in nearly every disease,” said Sriram Subramaniam, founder and CEO, Gandeeva Therapeutics, in the press release. “Gandeeva endeavors to unlock these mysteries by moving beyond recent developments in cryo-EM technology and in AI-driven approaches to structural biology by integrating these technologies in its pioneering platform. I’m thrilled to be leading an interdisciplinary and diverse team of biologists, chemists, microscopists and engineers to achieve this shared mission.”

Gandeeva raisded $40 million to advance its AI-driven cryo-EM platform, with which it will develop new therapeutics based on the precise imaging of protein–drug interactions.

Gandeeva Raises $40M to Develop Novel Therapies Based on Precision Imaging of Protein-Drug Interactions

Domainex is collaborating with Parkinson’s UK—a charitable funder of Parkinson’s research in Europe—for the development of small-molecule therapies targeting the neuroinflammation that is excessive in patients suffering from Parkinson’s disease.

According to a Feb. 3, 2022 press release, Domainex will provide fully integrated drug discovery services and the drug development arm of Parkinson’s UK will invest up to £3 million ($4 million) in the project. Using some of the previous work performed by Parkinson’s UK, which has led to the identification of novel small molecules that target a protein found on microglia in the brain, Domainex will conduct integrated drug discovery to ultimately select a clinical candidate. The end goal of the partnership is to develop a therapy that can slow or stop the progression of the disease.

“We are thrilled to have been selected by Parkinson’s UK to work on this promising project which has the potential to improve the lives of 145,000 people living with Parkinson’s in the UK,” said Tom Mander, CEO of Domainex, in the press release. “Domainex has built up significant expertise of working with several charities and patient foundations, including projects funded by the British Heart Foundation, CHDI Foundation and the Wellcome Trust, where we have utilized our extensive knowledge to add significant value. We look forward to working with the team at Parkinson’s UK and supporting the wider Parkinson’s community to progress the development of potentially life-changing medicines. Having studied microglial cells during my DPhil and spent a good part of my early industrial career working on macrophage activation, I am especially interested to see whether a new therapy emerges from our partnership.”

“Domainex was selected following an extensive review process on the basis of their experience and capability to execute a fully integrated drug discovery project, including the development of neuroinflammation assays and the optimization of our compounds’ target engagement in the brain,” added Richard Morphy, Drug Discovery manager at Parkinson’s UK, in the press release. “We’re delighted to work with Domainex and our other project partners to find compounds that can mitigate the damaging microglial over-activation in Parkinson’s. The Parkinson’s Virtual Biotech is driven by the experiences and most pressing needs of the Parkinson's community. We’re excited to work with Domainex over the course of the project to engage and involve people living with the condition in this important work.”

Domainex is collaborating with Parkinson’s UK for the development of small-molecule therapies targeting the neuroinflammation that is associated with Parkinson’s disease.

Domainex Collaborates with UK Charity to Develop Therapies for Parkinson’s

The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has responded to the publication of a white paper on ‘Levelling Up’ by the government of the United Kingdom, in a statement released on Feb. 2, 2022.

The aim of the Levelling Up white paper is to provide details on how the government plans to spread out opportunity more equally within the UK by the year 2030. According to Richard Torbett, chief executive of the ABPI, it is essential that the country’s life sciences’ sector is strong to aid with levelling up.

“The sector is already represented in every region across the UK, but by backing life sciences—and through the creation of highly-skilled, well-paid jobs in science, R&D and manufacturing—there is even greater potential for the life sciences to help level up the UK,” Torbett said in the press release. “The commitment to close the healthy life expectancy gap by 2030 is particularly important. To close this gap and transform the lives of patients, we need to make sure that people can access the best possible care wherever they live in the UK. Getting this right must be central to the missions set out today.”

ABPI has responded to the publication of a white paper on ‘Levelling Up’ by the government of the United Kingdom.

Industry Responds to the UK Gov’s Levelling Up White Paper

Zetta Genomics, a spin out from the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom, has raised £2.5 million ($3.4 million) in new seed funding, it was revealed in a Feb. 1, 2022 press release. With the funds raised, the company will invest in its XetaBase platform, which is a transformational genomic data management technology for the discovery and delivery of precision medicine at scale.

“Zetta Genomics re-imagines data to deliver a dynamic platform fit for the fast-emerging, fast-scaling, multi-petabyte environment,” said Ignacio Medina, Zetta Genomics founder, in the press release. “In liberating genomic data—placing its power into the hands of researchers and clinicians—we will drive precision medicine’s transformation into mainstream healthcare and life-changing patient benefit.”

“Genomic medicine has enjoyed explosive growth in the past five years, but this is set to be eclipsed in the next decade,” added Marc Subriats, partner, Nina Capital—a lead investor—in the press release. “XetaBase is an enabling technology—empowering virtually every research field and clinical application. As genomic sequencing moves from the hundreds of thousands to the hundreds of millions, Nina Capital is confident that Zetta Genomics’ growth will both drive and be driven by rapid advances in precision medicine.”

“Cambridge Enterprise creates and invests in companies, built on University of Cambridge research, that can have a huge positive impact on society,” said Elaine Loukes, investment director at University of Cambridge Enterprise—an investor in Zetta Genomics—in the press release. “From our first meeting it was clear that Ignacio had developed something incredibly special. Zetta’s technology helps researchers and clinicians fully exploit genomic data, speeding the delivery of precision medicine across the world.”

Zetta Genomics has raised £2.5 million ($3.4 million) in new seed funding.

Zetta Genomics Raises Millions in Seed Funding

The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson has submitted a marketing authorization application (MAA) to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for its investigational, off-the-shelf, T-cell redirecting, bispecific antibody, teclistamab, for the treatment of relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM).

Teclistamab has already been granted accelerated assessment by the EMA in December 2021, which will reduce the timescale for MAA review by EMA’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP). Janssen’s MAA submission is supported by clinical trial data that have evaluated the safety and efficacy of the treatment.

“Despite the significant progress that has been made in the treatment of multiple myeloma, it remains an incurable cancer, with approximately half of newly diagnosed patients not reaching five-year survival and almost a third dying within one year of diagnosis,” said Edmond Chan MBChB MD (Res), senior director, EMEA Therapeutic Area Lead Haematology, Janssen-Cilag Limited, in a Jan. 31, 2022 press release. “Today’s submission is an important step forward in our mission to improve outcomes for people living with multiple myeloma, where the need for new treatment strategies remains high.”

“We are pleased to announce the submission of teclistamab to the EMA. Once again, this shows our commitment to continue to provide innovative, transformative therapies for patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma,” added Peter Lebowitz, MD, PhD, Global Therapeutic Area head, Oncology, Janssen Research & Development, LLC, in the press release.

Janssen has submitted a MAA to the EMA for teclistamab as a treatment of relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM).