Lead ‘OncoMimics’ candidate EO2401 planned to start first clinical trials for Glioblastoma and Adrenal Tumors during mid-2020
Lead ‘OncoMimics’ candidate EO2401 planned to start first clinical trials for Glioblastoma and Adrenal Tumors during mid-2020
PARIS and CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, June 25, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- ENTEROME SA, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company leveraging its unique knowledge of the microbiome-immunoinflammation axis to develop next-generation therapeutics, today announces a new financing totaling €46.3 million ($52.6million) to progress the clinical development of its therapeutic pipeline, including the first clinical trials of EO2401, a novel ‘OncoMimic’ cancer immunotherapy.
As part of this financing, Enterome has closed a Series E round with new investors including SymBiosis, LLC, a microbiome-focused investment vehicle, and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited. Existing Enterome investors – Seventure, Health for Life Capital, Principia, Omnes Capital and Nestlé Health Science – also participated in the round. In addition, Enterome has made a first drawdown from a loan facility provided by the European Investment Bank (EIB) under a 2018 agreement.
Enterome will use the funds primarily to progress EO2401, an innovative, off-the-shelf immuno-oncology candidate, into the clinic in two cancer indications. The two Phase 1/2 clinical studies in glioblastoma and adrenal tumors, respectively, are planned to start during mid-2020. EO2401 is the first clinical candidate derived from Enterome’s first-in-class OncoMimics platform.
OncoMimics are microbiome-derived peptide antigens that closely mimic antigens expressed by tumor cells; they are selected based on their ability to trigger the rapid activation of memory T-cells that respond to gut bacteria and to direct a targeted cell-killing immune response against the tumor. EO2401 combines three OncoMimics present in aggressive cancers such as glioblastoma and adrenal malignancies.
Enterome expects its second OncoMimic candidate, EO2463, a new multi-peptide cancer immunotherapy, to enter the clinic in 2021 for the treatment of B-cell malignancies (lymphomas and leukaemias).
Enterome is also pursuing the development of its proprietary, next-generation EndoMimics platform, which is designed to produce a new generation of biologics with high potency and unique tolerability. These novel peptide/protein therapeutics are being developed for unmet medical needs in metabolic and inflammatory diseases.
Enterome’s lead EndoMimic candidate, EM101, is a human hormone mimetic produced by commensal bacteria. It is currently in pre-clinical development as a potential novel therapy for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
Enterome will continue to invest in developing its world-leading Metasecretome technology, of which both the OncoMimics and EndoMimics platforms are key components.
Pierre Belichard, Chief Executive Officer of Enterome, said: “We are extremely pleased to have completed this significant financing round, which represents an attractive balance of dilutive and non-dilutive funds. The financing will be used to progress EO2401, the first targeted immunotherapy generated from our unique OncoMimics platform. This platform capitalizes on the well-described, constant interaction between the microbiome and the immune system, resulting in a pool of memory T cells directed against specific commensal bacterial antigens that we have identified. We have discovered that some of these antigens bear striking similarity to those present on multiple cancer types and can induce a targeted, anti-tumor response – hence ‘OncoMimics’. We are exploiting this internal discovery to develop highly effective, off-the-shelf immunotherapies against cancers with significant unmet medical need. We look forward to starting the clinical development of this exciting new immunotherapy soon.”
Enterome will also use the proceeds to support its global partner Takeda Pharma to deliver proof-of-concept clinical data with EB8018 (sibofimloc/TAK-018), an oral FimH blocker for the treatment of Crohn’s disease.
“Takeda’s participation in this fundraising round builds on our long-standing productive collaboration with Enterome which is focused on the clinical development of sibofimloc, an oral FimH blocker for the treatment of Crohn’s disease,” said Asit Parikh, M.D., Ph. D., Head, Gastroenterology Therapeutic Area Unit at Takeda.
About Enterome
Enterome is a world leader in the discovery and development of novel pharmaceuticals based on its unrivalled understanding of the interaction between the gut microbiome and the immune system (the ‘microbiome-immunoinflammation axis’). Enterome is leveraging this expertise to develop a pipeline of clinical and pre-clinical candidates (small molecules, proteins and peptides) with a focus on cancer, autoimmune, inflammatory and metabolic diseases.
Enterome has two unique platforms that are generating highly promising drug candidates:
- OncoMimics: highly effective, off-the-shelf immunotherapies against cancers (EO2401, EO2463). EO2401 is expected to enter Phase 1/2 clinical trials in patients with glioblastoma and in patients with adrenal malignancies, respectively, during mid-2020. EO2463, is being prepared as a clinical candidate for B-cell malignancies.
- EndoMimics: a new generation of biologics for inflammatory diseases (EM101), Type 2 diabetes and inflammatory bowel disease.
These highly productive platforms have been created using Enterome’s world-leading Metasecretome technology, which gives it an unrivalled ability to generate precision drugs by using the natural reservoir of thousands of safe and tolerized effector proteins that are produced by the gut bacteria.
Enterome’s most advanced drug candidate is EB8018 (also referred to as sibofimloc/TAK-018), which selectively blocks the virulence factor FimH, is advancing through clinical trials in Crohn’s disease. EB8018 has been partnered with Takeda globally, with Enterome retaining a significant profit share in the US.
Enterome is headquartered in Paris (France) with operations in Boston (US) and is backed by leading venture capital investors.
Contacts
Enterome
Pierre Belichard, CEO
Tel. +33 1 75 77 27 87
media@enterome.com
Media Relations
Mark Swallow / Sylvie Berrebi / David Dible
Citigate Dewe Rogerson
Tel. +44 207 638 9571
enterome@citigatedewerogerson.com
Investor Relations
Melody Carey
Rx Communications Group
Tel. +1 917 322 2571
mcarey@rxir.com
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SOURCE Enterome
