Second pre|CISION Pro-drug Candidate Selected

RNS Number : 7440Y

Avacta Group PLC

18 January 2022

 

18 January 2022

Avacta Group plc

("Avacta" or "the Group" or "the Company")

Avacta Selects Second pre|CISION^TM Pro-drug Candidate for Development

Avacta Group plc (AIM: AVCT), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative cancer therapies and powerful diagnostics based on its proprietary Affimer^® and pre|CISION™ platforms announces that the next pre|CISION^TM drug candidate, AVA3996, has been selected for pre-clinical development with a view to a first-in-human Phase I clinical trial beginning in the second half of 2023.

Avacta's pre|CISION^TM chemistry is used to modify chemotherapy drugs to render them inactive in the circulation until they enter the tumour micro-environment where they are activated by an enzyme called fibroblast activation protein α (FAP). This enzyme is in high abundance in most solid tumours but, crucially, not in healthy tissues. The pre|CISION^TM platform therefore offers a way to reduce systemic exposure to, and improve the safety of, these effective and affordable cancer drugs. In this way the pre|CISION^TM platform is intended to increase the tolerability of chemotherapies and achieve better clinical outcomes for patients.

AVA3996 is a FAP-targeted pre|CISION^TM proteasome inhibitor. Proteasome inhibitors have a market that is expected to grow to $2.3bn by 2026[1], despite limited regulatory approvals of other molecules in this class due to their serious toxicities. AVA3996 has been designed to reduce these systemic toxicities by targeting the release of the proteasome inhibitor to FAP-rich tumour tissues.

Following a review of efficacy studies in several liquid and solid tumour models, safety studies and a review of manufacturability, AVA3996 has been selected as a candidate for pre-clinical development with the aim of a Clinical Trial Authorisation (CTA) and/or Investigational New Drug (IND) filing in the first half of 2023 and dosing of the first patient later in the year.

Dr Alastair Smith, Chief Executive of Avacta Group, commented:

"We are excited by the early pre-clinical data for AVA3996, the second of Avacta's pre|CISION^TM pro-drugs following on from AVA6000. The pre|CISION^TM platform has the potential to generate a significant pipeline of safer, better tolerated chemotherapies to treat a wide range of cancers. It represents a major commercial opportunity and the principal value driver for the Group.

"If AVA3996 is shown to have a significantly improved safety profile in the clinic, then not only could it provide a better tolerated treatment for multiple myeloma, but it has the potential to be the first proteasome inhibitor to be suitable for treating solid tumours, thereby significantly increasing the market opportunity."

ENDS

For further information from Avacta Group plc, please contact:

Avacta Group plc Alastair Smith, Chief Executive Officer Tony Gardiner, Chief Financial Officer Michael Vinegrad, Group Communications Director	Tel: [phone] www.avacta.com
Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited (Nomad and Broker) Nicholas Moore / Nick Adams / Fred Walsh / Nicholas Harland	Tel: [phone] www.stifel.com
FTI Consulting (Financial Media and IR) Simon Conway / Alex Shaw	Tel: [phone] [e-mail]
Zyme Communications (Trade and Regional Media) Lily Jeffery	Tel: [phone] [e-mail]

About Avacta Group plc - https://www.avacta.com

Avacta Group is developing novel cancer immunotherapies and powerful diagnostics based on its two proprietary platforms - Affimer^® biologics and pre|CISION™ tumour targeted chemotherapies.

The Affimer^® platform is an alternative to antibodies derived from a small human protein. Despite their shortcomings, antibodies currently dominate markets, such as diagnostics and therapeutics, worth in excess of $100bn. Affimer technology has been designed to address many of these negative performance issues, principally: the time taken to generate new antibodies and the reliance on an animal's immune response; poor specificity in many cases; their large size, complexity and high cost of manufacture.

Avacta's pre|CISION™ targeted chemotherapy platform releases active chemotherapy in the tumour, which limits the systemic exposure that causes damage to healthy tissues, and thereby improves the overall safety and therapeutic potential of these powerful anti-cancer treatments.

The Group comprises two divisions: The therapeutics development activities are based in London and Cambridge, UK and the Group is generating near-term revenues from Affimer reagents for diagnostics, bioprocessing and research, through a separate diagnostics business unit based in Wetherby, UK.

Avacta's Diagnostics Division is developing an in-house pipeline of Affimer-based diagnostic assays, including the AffiDX^® SARS-CoV-2 Lateral Flow Rapid Antigen Test, and works with partners world-wide to develop bespoke Affimer^® reagents for third party products.

Avacta's Therapeutics Division is working to deliver a more tolerable and durable treatment response for oncology patients who do not respond to existing immunotherapies. By combining its two proprietary platforms the Group is building a wholly owned pipeline of clinically differentiated cancer therapies, aiming to extend the therapeutic benefits to all cancer patients. In 2021 Avacta transitioned to become a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, commencing a phase I first-in-human, open label, dose-escalation and expansion study of AVA6000, a pro-doxorubicin, the Group's lead pre|CISION™ prodrug, in patients with locally advanced or metastatic selected solid tumours.

Avacta has established drug development partnerships with pharma and biotech, including a research collaboration with ModernaTX, Inc. (formerly Moderna Therapeutics Inc.), a multi-target deal with LG Chem worth up to $400m, a joint venture in South Korea with Daewoong Pharmaceutical focused on cell and gene therapies incorporating Affimer immune-modulators and a collaboration with Point Biopharma to develop radiopharmaceuticals based on the pre|CISION™ platform. Avacta continues to actively seek to license its proprietary platforms in a range of therapeutic areas.

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[1] https://www.expertmarketresearch.com/reports/proteasome-inhibitors-market

 

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