Munich, Germany, 24th July, 2012: SuppreMol GmbH, an autoimmune disease specialist,
today announced a licensing agreement with the University Hospital of Regensburg to
develop SM401, a humanized anti-IL-3 monoclonal antibody for early diagnosis and treatment
of Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA). SuppreMol will advance preclinical development of SM401 for
treatment of RA. Simultaneously, the Company will further validate a highly sensitive human
IL-3 diagnostic assay for patient stratification.
SuppreMol’s preclinical candidate SM401 has demonstrated, in a murine model for RA, that it
significantly reduces progression and severity of the disease. At the same time, levels of the
inflammatory cytokines IL-6 and TNF-alpha, which are reduced by several established RA
drugs, are also lowered. Furthermore, it has been demonstrated that IL-3 concentrations were
only elevated at the onset of arthritis and fell to low levels during the course of the disease in
the animal model. Using the newly developed IL-3 diagnostic assay, SuppreMol expects to
develop a biomarker for the stratification of RA patients.
“This SM401 program advances SuppreMol's strategy to target very early events in the
development of autoimmune diseases,” said Dr. Peter Sondermann, CSO and co-founder of
SuppreMol GmbH. “Through this early intervention approach we expect to stop progression of
the autoimmune disease rather than simply treating symptoms of inflammation. We expect to
begin clinical trials in 2014.”
The anti-IL-3 monoclonal antibody was generated by the group of Professor Dr. Matthias
Mack at Regensburg University Hospital - Internal Medicine II, following the discovery that
increased levels of IL-3 indicate early onset and activity of RA. Prof. Mack is a member of
SuppreMol’s Scientific Advisory Board.
“This licensing agreement with Bayerische Patentallianz GmbH provides SuppreMol a very
strong portfolio of autoimmune therapies and a potential companion RA diagnostic,” said
Professor Dr. Peter Buckel, CEO of SuppreMol GmbH. “Along with our Fc gamma receptor
platform with three clinical and two further preclinical programs targeting autoimmune
diseases and allergies, this SM401 program is another building block in the strong foundation
of the company’s future,” he added. Bayerische Patentallianz GmbH is the central patent and
marketing agency of the Bavarian Universities and Universities of Applied Sciences, including
the University of Regensburg.
Early development of SM401 is being funded by a grant of € 1.37 million from the German
Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). The project was funded in Prof. Mack’s
laboratory through BayImmuNet, the Bayerisches Immuntherapie Netzwerk; the development
of a therapeutic anti-IL-3 antibody including a highly sensitive IL-3 assay is supported by the
German Federal Ministry of Education and Research within the Leading-Egde Cluster “m4 Personalized Medicine and Targeted Therapies” in Munich.
About SuppreMol
SuppreMol, a privately held biopharmaceutical company, is developing novel proteins to treat
autoimmune diseases. The company is pioneering the development of soluble Fc gamma
receptors (Fc?Rs), which are recombinant autologous therapeutic proteins with a specific
immunoregulatory potential. Currently, the company is developing Fc?Rs for the treatment of
Primary Immune Thrombocytopenia (ITP) and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) in
Phase II clinical trials. Further building its platform of selective immunoregulators, SuppreMol
is working on antibody programs targeting Fc receptors and other immunomodulatory
molecules for alternative treatment strategies in autoimmune conditions, including a
humanized anti-IL-3 monoclonal antibody for early diagnosis and treatment of Rheumatoid
Arthritis (RA). SuppreMol was founded as a spin-off from the laboratory of Prof. Dr. Robert
Huber, Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1988, at the Max Planck Institute for Biochemistry in
Martinsried, Germany. To date SuppreMol has raised € 35.8 million through private investors
and € 11.7 million in project funding. The last round in 2010 raised € 15.5 million in a Series C
financing. Investors in the company include MIG Fonds, BioMedPartners AG, Santo Holding
GmbH and FCP Biotech Holding GmbH along with KfW Mittelstandsbank, Bayern Kapital
GmbH, Max Planck Society, and Z-Cube.
Contact
SuppreMol GmbH
Prof. Dr. Peter Buckel
Chief Executive Officer
Tel: +49 89 30 90 50 680
E-mail: info@suppremol.com
www.suppremol.com