On March 17, 2021 T-Cure Bioscience, Inc., a privately held company focused on developing T cell receptor (TCR) therapy products for the treatment of solid tumors, reported that the Company has entered into a clinical research agreement with Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, to fund a Phase I clinical study testing a TCR-based product candidate for the treatment of tumors expressing Kita-Kyushu lung cancer antigen 1 (KK-LC-1), such as gastric, cervical, lung, and triple negative breast cancers (Press release, T-Cure Bioscience, MAR 17, 2021, View Source [SID1234576818]). T-Cure acquired the KK-LC-1 TCR therapy under an exclusive, worldwide license with the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in 2020. The Principal Investigator who will conduct the clinical research is Christian S. Hinrichs, M.D., Chief of the Section of Cancer Immunotherapy and Co-Director of the Cancer Immunology and Metabolism Center of Excellence at Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey. Dr. Hinrichs is an expert in cancer immunology and immunotherapy and was recruited from the NCI where he served as Senior Investigator at the Genitourinary Malignancies Branch. T-Cure anticipates the KK-LC-1 TCR therapy will enter a multi-site Phase 1 clinical study in the second quarter of 2021 at the NCI, with the clinical study responsibilities to be transferred to Rutgers in the second half of 2021.

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"I joined the Cancer Immunology and Metabolism Center of Excellence because I believe that Rutgers Cancer Institute can be a global leader in cancer and tumor immunology research and development. In support of that mission, I am excited to partner with T-Cure to launch the first cell therapy clinical trial targeting the KK-LC-1 antigen," stated Dr. Hinrichs. "I began collaborating with the T-Cure team on this T cell receptor therapy while at the NCI, and I am pleased to continue working with them to advance this therapy at Rutgers."

"We look forward to our partnership with Dr. Hinrichs at Rutgers as a continuation of the work we undertook with him and his team at the NCI to advance this novel TCR product candidate through preclinical and clinical development," stated Gang Zeng, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of T-Cure. "The TCR was isolated from the tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes of a patient who had a complete response to a safely administered immunotherapy. Accordingly, we believe it holds great promise for engineering patients’ immune cells to effectively target and destroy cancer cells without being harmful to healthy tissue."

On March 17, 2021 Carmot Therapeutics, Inc. (Berkeley, CA), a clinical stage biotechnology company advancing transformative therapies for patients with metabolic diseases, reported the appointment of Manu Chakravarthy, MD, PhD as Chief Medical Officer and EVP of R&D, and member of the executive leadership team (Press release, Carmot, MAR 17, 2021, View Source [SID1234576819]). Dr. Chakravarthy will be based in Boston and lead the expansion of Carmot with an east-coast presence.

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"Dr. Chakravarthy joins Carmot at a very exciting time, as we initiate phase 1 and 2 clinical studies in metabolic diseases and advance our rapidly growing portfolio of pre-clinical programs" commented Stig K. Hansen, PhD, Carmot’s co-founder and Chief Executive Officer. "Treatment of type 2 diabetes and associated metabolic diseases is currently undergoing a paradigm shift with the advent of dual modulators of the GLP-1 and GIP incretin pathways. Carmot is at the forefront of this transformation with novel therapeutics built on unique insights into GLP-1 and GIP biology supported by Chemotype Evolution, our proprietary drug discovery platform. Manu is a highly respected medical expert and a scientific leader with a strong research background and will guide the success of our growing pipeline."

"I am thrilled to join Carmot at this stage of the Company’s evolution", said Dr. Chakravarthy. "Carmot’s ability to dissect biological pathways and discover novel chemical matter has enabled new treatment modalities including CT-868 and CT-388, Carmot’s dual incretin receptor modulators, entering phase 2 and 1 studies in 1H21. I am excited to apply my experience to complement Carmot’s science-driven culture and transform the treatment of diabetes and its many co-morbidities."

Dr. Chakravarthy joins Carmot Therapeutics from Axcella Health, where he has served as Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer and a member of the executive team with direct oversight of all phases of clinical development, regulatory affairs, quality, and scientific communications.

Prior to Axcella, Dr. Chakravarthy served as the Vice President and Global Head of External R&D and Innovation Strategy in Diabetes and Cardiovascular Research at Eli Lilly. Before his global leadership role at Lilly, Dr. Chakravarthy worked across the R&D spectrum at Merck from discovery, clinical pharmacology, biomarker development and late-stage drug development covering diverse disease areas. His work in clinical pharmacology supported regulatory filings for successful drug approvals in endocrine, neuroscience, and infectious diseases. He assumed positions of increasing responsibility and leadership within Merck, and as a Distinguished Scientist, led Discovery Medicine for the Diabetes and Cardiometabolic therapeutic area. Dr. Chakravarthy earned his M.D. from the University of Texas Houston Medical School and a Ph.D. in Cell Biology & Physiology from the MD Anderson Cancer Center and University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences combined MD-PhD program. He trained in Internal Medicine at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, and in Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Dr. Chakravarthy continues to serve patients as an Adjunct Clinical Asst. Professor of Medicine at the Rutgers School of Medicine in New Jersey. He is internationally recognized as a thought leader in metabolic diseases, reflected by his published work in numerous high-impact peer-reviewed scientific journals and invited speakerships.

On March 17, 2021 Evotec SE (Frankfurt Stock Exchange: EVT, MDAX/TecDAX, ISIN: DE0005664809) reported that it will announce its financial results for 2020 on Thursday, 25 March 2021 (Press release, Evotec, MAR 17, 2021, View Source;announcements/press-releases/p/evotec-se-to-announce-results-for-fiscal-year-2020-on-25-march-2021-6034 [SID1234576846]).

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The Company is going to hold a conference call to discuss the results as well as to provide an update on its performance. The conference call will be held in English.

Conference call details

Date: Thursday, 25 March 2021
Time: 02.00 pm CET (09.00 am EDT, 01.00 pm GMT)

On March 17, 2021 Academy Award winner Jamie Foxx has joined Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) and Exact Sciences for a new public service announcement (PSA), reported that which raises awareness about colorectal cancer screenings, early detection and prevention, and focuses on reaching underrepresented communities (Press release, Exact Sciences, MAR 17, 2021, View Source [SID1234577020]). The campaign launched today to coincide with Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month and is in both English and Spanish. The PSA will be placed across print, broadcast, radio, digital and out-of-home outlets.

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"Cancer affects everyone. I’ve lost good friends – young friends – to this deadly disease," said Foxx. "We need to make sure that we are taking care of our bodies, paying attention to certain things, that you didn’t necessarily think about when you were younger. Medical issues come up and you may not know what’s at your disposal, so that is why I am proud to shine a light on the importance of getting screened for colon cancer early and bring awareness to the options that are available with this PSA campaign."

In 2020, nearly 148,000 Americans received a new diagnosis of colon or rectal cancer. Black people have the highest colorectal cancer rates of any ethnic group in the United States. They are 20% more likely to get colorectal cancer and 40% more likely to die from it than any other population. And research has shown that colorectal cancer screening rates are the lowest in Hispanic communities, with Black and Hispanic people typically being diagnosed at a later stage in the disease when it is more difficult to treat.

"We are so thankful to Jamie Foxx for lending his voice to this campaign. We have seen a sharp drop in screenings as a result of COVID-19, and this compounds an already significant screening disparity in minority communities," said Sung Poblete, PhD, RN, CEO of Stand Up To Cancer. "With routine screening, colorectal cancer is one of the most preventable cancers. It’s beatable in 90% of cases when detected early, and lives can be saved with just one simple step. People must get screened!"

"We are thrilled to partner with Jamie Foxx and our friends at Stand Up To Cancer to get more people thinking about their options for colorectal cancer screening," said Kevin Conroy, chairman and CEO of Exact Sciences. "We remain committed to addressing the challenges we face in colorectal cancer screening and helping to save lives with education, awareness and cutting-edge research. Providing personalized outreach and making it easier to get people screened is vital, especially in minority communities."

The PSA campaign is part of a larger initiative between Exact Sciences and SU2C. With a $10 million grant from Exact Sciences, SU2C will launch a new colorectal cancer ‘Dream Team’ of researchers that will identify communities near anchor institutions serving medically underserved communities. This Dream Team will help pinpoint unique local needs of those areas and will provide free colorectal cancer testing in the identified zones and study samples collected via approved tests for colorectal cancer, including colonoscopy, CT colonography, flexible sigmoidoscopy, and at-home stool tests that analyze fecal DNA and/or blood. The research will aim to develop better approaches to colorectal cancer interception.

The PSA was directed by Tommy Walker and photographed by G.L. Askew II for Petrol Advertising, a creative marketing and advertising agency specializing in gaming, sports, technology and philanthropy. Walker co-directed and produced the feature-length documentary, God Grew Tired of Us, which won Best Documentary and Audience Award at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival and produced the 2019 documentary, Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am. Askew, originally from Atlanta, is an artist whose work is rooted in communicating the truth of the human experience.

On March 17, 2021 Vaccitech Ltd ("Vaccitech"), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of novel immunotherapeutics and vaccines for the treatment and prevention of infectious diseases and cancer, reported that it has raised $168 million in a Series B financing (Press release, Vaccitech, MAR 17, 2021, View Source [SID1234576778]). This includes $43 million in convertible loan notes previously issued by Vaccitech that converted into Series B shares.

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The Series B financing round was led by M&G Investment Management (part of M&G plc), with further participation from new investors including Tencent, Gilead Sciences, Monaco Constitutional Reserve Fund, and Future Planet Capital among others. The Series B financing round was also supported by existing investors, including Oxford Sciences Innovation.

"We expect this financing to enable us to reach key value inflection points for our lead programs," said Bill Enright, Chief Executive Officer of Vaccitech. "We now look forward to advancing key programs towards generating proof-of-concept data in indications with significant need of effective new treatments."

The proceeds from the financing will support the continued development of three infectious disease and immuno-oncology programs. The programs include:

A Phase 1/2 clinical trial of VTP-300 in patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. The first patient in the trial was dosed in February 2021.
A Phase 1/2 clinical trial of VTP-200 in patients with persistent, high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.
A Phase 1/2 clinical trial of VTP-850 in combination with a checkpoint inhibitor in patients with prostate cancer.
Vaccitech’s proprietary prime-boost platform combines modified simian adenoviral vectors (known as ChAdOx1 or ChAdOx2) to prime a targeted immune response with the Modified Vaccinia Ankara virus (MVA) to boost the targeted immune response against cells infected with a virus or tumor cells. Vaccitech’s heterologous prime-boost approach has been demonstrated to drive powerful immune responses, including the leading CD8+ T cell stimulation profile in humans, to date. In addition to the HBV, HPV and prostate cancer programs, Vaccitech’s pipeline includes product candidates targeting infectious disease (including MERS coronavirus and Herpes Zoster) and cancer (including non-small cell lung cancer).

"Vaccitech is aiming to address serious global public health challenges in both infectious disease and cancer with their T cell inducing immunotherapy platform," said Jack Daniels, Chief Investment Officer of M&G plc. "We believe their innovative approach, based on foundational research performed at the Jenner Institute at the University of Oxford, could provide a solution for many serious diseases."