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Development programme for a novel immunotherapy against tuberculosis These novel immunotherapeutics
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease that primarily affects the lungs and can be lethal if left untreated or when resistance is developed. TB remains one of the deadliest infectious diseases in the world. According to WHO (World Health
Organization), in 2011, there were an estimated 8.7 million new cases of TB and 1.4 million people died from the disease. A major issue of TB infection is the
development of resistance to primary antibiotic treatment. Such cases amount to approximately 500,000 cases worldwide. The success rate of second-line therapy to treat patients whose disease has become resistant to treatment varies widely, from 15-60% depending on the degree of resistance, and requires 18-30 months of application. There is currently only one available
TB vaccine, Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG), developed in 1921, which is widely used and effective in preventing
severe forms of TB in children. However, BCG has little to no efficacy in preventing pulmonary TB, the most common and infectious form of TB in adults and adolescents, and is unsafe to use in newborns with HIV. Thus, new immunotherapies are
needed for those populations for whom there is today no effective treatment, as well as to overcome resistance and to shorten treatment duration. Now, Transgene SA has been
granted a sub-award from Emergent BioSolutions Inc. under its existing grant of approximately $5 million from the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the US National Institutes of Health (NIH). The funding will be used to advance Transgene’s TB immunotherapy programme. Transgene’s TB programme is
focused on developing a targeted immunotherapeutic to treat active TB, including resistant TB, utilising the company’s core viral vector technology
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contain, among other elements, a large array of TB proteins expressed during all phases of both active and latent infection. An immunotherapy approach offers
the potential, especially for patients whose disease has become resistant to treatment, to enhance the effectiveness of current antibacterial therapies by correcting the immune system’s faulty response to the disease. Several potential product candidates have been generated by Transgene and are currently being evaluated to determine the best candidate to advance into further development. Transgene has entered into
a collaboration with Emergent BioSolutions for cell line process development and manufacturing for Transgene’s TB development candidate. Emergent BioSolutions’ significant expertise in process development and manufacturing complements Transgene’s capabilities.
Transgene retains all development
and commercialisation rights to candidates generated under this NIAID- funded programme. “There is an urgent need for new
treatments for tuberculosis, which remains an acute problem in emerging countries and is rapidly reappearing in parts of the developed world, notably Europe. The NIAID funding, as well as the collaboration with Emergent BioSolutions, should accelerate Transgene’s TB immunotherapy development program, which seeks to help address this major medical need,” said Philippe Archinard, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Transgene. He added: “Our TB programme, a unique, truly innovative antigenic combination, is a good example of the adaptability of Transgene’s viral vector-based immunotherapy core technology and the productivity of our R&D engine.”
For more information, visit
www.transgene.fr
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