On August 24, 2026 VERAXA Biotech AG (NASDAQ: VRXA; "VERAXA"), an emerging leader in the design and development of next-generation cancer therapeutics, and Secarna Pharmaceuticals GmbH & Co. KG ("Secarna"), a company redefining the discovery and development of best-in-class oligonucleotide therapeutics, reported initial positive results from their strategic research collaboration to develop next-generation antibody oligonucleotide conjugates (AOCs) for the treatment of autoimmune and chronic immune diseases.
Schedule your 30 min Free 1stOncology Demo!
Discover why more than 1,500 members use 1stOncology™ to excel in:
Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing
Schedule Your 30 min Free Demo!
In early in vitro studies, an AOC candidate sourced by combining both parties’ technologies and expertise demonstrated greater potency compared to the equivalent unconjugated, naked oligonucleotide, underlining the future therapeutic potential of the approach. Encouraged by these results, both parties are now discussing the next steps in this alliance. AOCs are increasingly seen as a potentially transformative approach in precision medicine, enabling targeted delivery of therapeutic oligonucleotides to disease-specific cells. Recent clinical advancements have demonstrated their potential in treating a broad range of diseases by overcoming traditional challenges like poor bioavailability and off-target effects.
"Achieving this milestone in our collaboration with Secarna in less than a year demonstrates that our conjugation technology powered by our proprietary click chemistry can be applied efficiently within partnerships beyond our company’s primary focus areas in solid tumors," commented Christoph Erkel, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer of VERAXA. "We look forward to continuing our collaboration with Secarna, a leading innovator in oligonucleotide-based therapeutics and unlocking the breadth of opportunities in this emerging drug class."
"While our oligonucleotide pipeline advances and other delivery strategies for our oligonucleotide medicines continue to be very relevant, antibody-guided oligonucleotides offer distinct advantages due to the selective targeting mechanism provided by the antibody carrier," said Konstantin Petropoulos, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of Secarna Pharmaceuticals.
(Press release, Veraxa Biotech, AUG 24, 2026, View Source [SID1234670310])