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Potent Adjuvant is a Toll-Like Receptor 3 (Tlr3) Agonist
San Diego, CA, USA | June 18, 2008 | Nventa Biopharmaceuticals Corporation (TSX:NVN) today announced that the company has developed a proprietary vaccine adjuvant, Poly IC–Poly Arginine (Poly-ICR), that has broad potential for use in both therapeutic and prophylactic vaccines.
Poly-ICR is a Toll-like Receptor 3 (TLR3) agonist that when combined with a disease-specific antigen can induce both cytotoxic (T-cell) and antibody (B-cell) immune responses against that antigen. Cytotoxic T-cells, also referred to as CD8 T-cells, are required to target and eliminate pathogen-infected or cancerous cells. Antibodies, or B-cells, are required to protect against an infection caused by a pathogen. Poly-ICR, therefore, has potential utility in both the therapeutic and prophylactic areas of immunotherapy and vaccine development. This novel and potent immunomodulator works with the immune system to induce dendritic cell maturation, along with a broad range of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, to facilitate the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases or cancer.
Data generated using Poly-ICR, in combination with a tumor-associated antigen, have demonstrated that the addition of the adjuvant potently increases the antigen-specific CD8 T-cell levels, while both inducing regression of tumors and preventing tumor growth in mouse models. Poly-ICR is differentiated from other Poly IC compositions by its high stability and potency in human sera, as well as its consistency in physical-chemical properties. Nventa has successfully manufactured research and development lots of Poly-ICR and expects that its current manufacturing process can be used to produce future cGMP material.
“We believe that Poly-ICR will add tremendous value to Nventa’s internal pipeline and to the programs of vaccine developers worldwide, as we expect significant demand for Poly-ICR in the rapidly growing vaccine field, particularly where access to previously available TLR-based adjuvants has become restrictive,” said Gregory M. McKee, president and chief executive officer at Nventa. “The adjuvant’s exceptional preclinical profile suggests that it may elicit robust, antigenspecific cellular immune responses in humans, enhancing the effect of both therapeutic and prophylactic vaccines against targeted antigens and pathogens.”
Nventa intends to incorporate Poly-ICR into its future CoValTM therapeutic compound programs. The company is also currently in discussions with multiple vaccine developers worldwide and intends to grant access to Poly-ICR to such potential partners through license agreements.
About Nventa Corporation
Nventa is developing innovative therapeutics for the treatment of viral infections and cancer, with a focus on diseases caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). The corporation is publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol NVN. For more information about Nventa, please visit www.nventacorp.com.
SOURCE: Nventa Biopharmaceuticals Corporation |
