Cambridge UK, 7th June 2011 - Antitope Ltd., Cambridge UK (“Antitope”) today announced a research collaboration with NasVax Ltd., Israel (“NasVax“) for the generation of monoclonal therapeutic antibodies for the treatment of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. During the collaboration, Antitope will apply its Composite Human AntibodyTM technology to generate fully-humanized antibodies. The resulting fully-humanized antibodies will be devoid of T cell epitopes and will have a reduced risk of clinical immunogenicity.
“We are delighted to be working with NasVax to assist with their drug development programs,” said Dr Matthew Baker, Chief Scientific Officer and co-founder of Antitope, adding, “We are excited about the prospects for NasVax’s therapeutic antibodies and our collaboration underlines the continuing success of our Composite Human AntibodyTM technology.”
“NasVax has great confidence in Antitope’s team and technology for being able to produce a high-quality monoclonal antibody for our development programs,” said Dr Rom Eliaz, Chief Executive Officer of NasVax.
About Antitope Ltd.
Antitope Ltd. is a privately-held Cambridge UK-based biotechnology company specializing in immunogenicity testing and the engineering of therapeutic antibodies/proteins with reduced immunogenicity. Antitope’s proprietary EpiScreenTM technology enables preclinical analysis of the potential for immunogenicity of therapeutic antibodies and proteins. Antitope’s proprietary Composite Human AntibodyTM technology results in the generation of humanized antibodies devoid of T cell epitopes. Antitope has established multiple commercial relationships with leading biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies worldwide.
About NasVax Ltd.
NasVax (TASE: NSVX) develops improved vaccines and immunotherapeutic products. The company has four distinct programs: oral anti-CD3 immunotherapy employing a monoclonal antibody for down-regulating pathogenic immune cells in inflammatory and autoimmune diseases; BBS, an immunotherapeutic monoclonal antibody for Alzheimer’s disease; group-common protein-based pneumococcal vaccine; and VaxiSome®, an adjuvant for enhancing the immunogenicity of vaccines and immunotherapeutics. The company has ongoing collaborations with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) for part of the pneumococcal vaccine program and with Novartis for VaxiSome®.
Contact Information:
Antitope Limited
Neil Butt PhD
Business Development
Tel: +44 1223 496190
Email: info@antitope.co.uk
