On October 20, 2021 Viome Life Sciences, a mission-driven systems biology company aiming to help individuals improve their health, reported the expansion of its two-year partnership with GSK, a science-led global healthcare company, to expand clinical research activities1 and potential development of new therapeutic interventions within the fields of chronic diseases including autoimmune diseases and cancers (Press release, GlaxoSmithKline, OCT 20, 2021, View Source [SID1234591621]). This expansion builds on a previously announced collaboration to research the prevention of specific chronic diseases, leveraging Viome’s proprietary microbiome analysis and artificial intelligence platforms and GSK’s expertise in immunology.

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"Most chronic disorders are treated with drugs targeting symptoms and not causes. Viome’s unique mRNA technology and state-of-the-art artificial intelligence platform have the potential to find the root causes of specific chronic disorders and cancers. With that critical information and the unique expertise of GSK, we aspire to one day cure these diseases and not just manage the symptoms," said Viome CEO and Founder, Naveen Jain. "We are excited to expand our collaboration with GSK to develop preventative and therapeutic measures for chronic diseases and cancers."

The gut microbiome is well recognized for its ability to shape immune fitness, with nearly 70-80% of the immune system housed inside the gut microbiome2 [PubMed]. A healthy gut microbiome supports the immune system, which is connected to an individual’s overall well-being, weight, energy, mood, and stress. Imbalances in the gut microbiome have been associated with inflammation and chronic diseases ranging from gastrointestinal inflammatory and metabolic conditions to neurological, cardiovascular, and respiratory illnesses3 [NCBI]. Through this collaboration, Viome and GSK will examine the connection between the gut microbiome and specific chronic disorders by performing a clinical validation trial. The overall objective of the collaboration aims to advance viable health interventions for the many diseases that continue to threaten individuals, families, and communities around the world.

"A better understanding of the interactions between the immune system and microbiome – which have been shown to have a significant impact on human health – has been part of GSK’s innovation strategy," said Rino Rappuoli, Head of R&D Vaccines, GSK. "By combining our robust expertise in immunology with Viome’s unique technology with its proprietary mRNA analysis and artificial intelligence platform, we look forward to uncovering additional key insights into chronic diseases."

Through this partnership, GSK and Viome will continue to examine chronic diseases that are without treatment and will work to develop much-needed new targets for potential interventions. GSK and Viome understand the potential of the gut microbiome to influence an individual’s immune system and determine the effectiveness of health interventions and will tap into Viome’s extensive research and findings as well as GSK’s expertise to accomplish this. Viome is committed to creating a world where chronic diseases could truly be prevented before they cause significant problems.

On October 20, 2021 Oxilio reported that it signed an exclusive global licensing agreement with TRx Biosciences Ltd, a privately held pharmaceutical development company, for its patent rights and know-how connected with the TRx platform technology (Press release, Oxilio, OCT 20, 2021, View Source [SID1234621599]). Oxilio will use this technology for the development and commercialisation of an optimised compound formulation in the field of cancer treatment.

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The TRx technology enables targeted oral drug delivery to specific organs, cells and tissues in cancer using a clinically and commercially proven approach.

On October 20, 2021 F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd. (hereafter "Roche") [Head Office: Basel, Switzerland. CEO: Severin Schwan] reported its third quarter sales 2021 (January 1 – September 30, 2021) (Press release, Chugai, OCT 20, 2021, View Source [SID1234591568]).

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Roche owns 59.89% of Chugai’s outstanding shares (61.16% of the total number of shares issued excluding treasury stock) as of the end of September 2021.

Its investor updates and presentation materials can be found on its website (View Source).
Chugai’s performance for the period of January 1 to September 30, 2021 is included in the announced Roche Group’s results.

On October 20, 2021 F-star Therapeutics, Ltd. (NASDAQ: FSTX) ("F-star" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing next generation immunotherapies to transform the lives of patients with cancer, reported that it has entered into a license and collaboration agreement with Janssen Biotech, Inc., one of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson (Press release, F-star, OCT 20, 2021, View Source [SID1234591585]). The agreement was facilitated by Johnson & Johnson Innovation.

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Under the terms of the agreement, F-star will grant Janssen a worldwide, exclusive royalty-bearing license to research, develop, and commercialize up to five novel bispecific antibodies directed to Janssen therapeutic targets using F-star’s proprietary Fcab and mAb2 platforms. Janssen will be responsible for all research, development, and commercialization activities under the agreement.

Neil Brewis, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer of F-star said, "We are pleased to collaborate with Janssen and leverage the science of F-star’s proprietary tetravalent bispecific technology. Beyond our proprietary pipeline, we believe there is broad potential for our mAb2 platform to produce multiple next-generation bispecific antibody therapeutics."

Under the terms of the agreement F-star is entitled to receive upfront fees of $17.5 million, near-term fees and potential further milestones of up to $1.35 billion. F-star is also eligible to receive potential tiered mid-single digit royalties on annual net sales.

About F-star’s Fcab and mAb2 Platforms

F-star’s proprietary platform allows substitutions in the Fc region of a natural antibody, creating two additional distinct antigen binding sites. The resulting Fcab (Fc with antigen binding) building blocks can be rapidly inserted into a natural IgG antibody format to create tetravalent mAb2 bispecific antibodies that bind, simultaneously, to two different antigens.

F-star’s mAb2 bispecific antibodies are designed to conserve the natural human antibody format, with greater than 95% identity, providing minimal systemic toxicity, low immunogenicity risk, and ease of manufacturability.

Fcab building blocks can be used to generate not only bispecific antibodies but also tri-specific antibodies and fusion proteins.

F-star has 230 granted patents and over 150 pending applications covering its Fcab and mAb2 technology and associated product pipeline.

On October 20, 2021 Crescendo Biologics Ltd (Crescendo), a clinical stage immuno-oncology company developing novel, targeted T cell enhancing therapeutics, reported a new translational science collaboration with The Institute of Cancer Research, London, one of the world’s most influential cancer research organisations (Press release, Crescendo Biologics, OCT 20, 2021, View Source [SID1234591605]). Working together, Crescendo and The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) will further characterise the non-clinical pharmacology of CB307, Crescendo’s first-in-class lead programme.

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CB307 is a novel, half-life extended PSMA x CD137 bispecific currently in a Phase 1 clinical study. It is designed for the conditional and durable activation and expansion of tumour-specific T cell populations, exclusively within the tumour microenvironment. The alliance with the ICR will drive valuable mechanistic insights into the pharmacology of CB307 in both in vitro and in vivo settings. It will include studies on patient-derived prostate cancer tissues to extend the understanding of PSMA and CD137 co-localisation and their influence on CB307-mediated T cell enhancement.

Professor Johann de Bono, Regius Professor of Cancer Research and Head of the Division of Clinical Studies at the ICR, commented: "We are very pleased to have initiated this important work with the team at Crescendo. Next generation immunotherapies could offer much-needed new treatment options to patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer, as well as other cancer types with high prevalence. We expect this collaboration to provide meaningful additional insights into the mechanisms and activity of CB307 in a variety of relevant settings."

Dr Andrew Pierce, VP Translational Biology at Crescendo, added: "The ICR is a world-renowned research institution, and we are very excited to have the opportunity to collaborate with Professor de Bono and his team to further explore the immunobiology of PSMA and CD137, including their co-localisation in tumour tissue. The results of these translational studies will be of great importance in understanding the profile of CB307, especially when placed alongside the clinical results as they continue to emerge from our ongoing clinical programme."