April 17, 2015
By Alex Keown, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff
STOCKHOLM -- NeuroVive Pharmaceutical AB announced a new phase for its stroke drug candidate NVPO14 with U.K. partner Isomerase Therapeutics, based on new molecules.
NeuroVive ended its partnership with To-BBB of the Netherlands at the end of 2014, when the contract between the two expired. NeuroVive said it sought a new partner following to-BBB’s restructuring and liquidation at the end of 2014. In September, to-BBB announced the restructuring and changed its name to BBB Therapeutics B.V.
The partnership with to-BBB was funded through a grant from Vinnova, an agency of the Swedish government. Vinnova approved NeuroVive’s new partnership with Isomerase. The companies are seeking additional funding for the project.
The company said the new phase of drug research will include the development “of new molecules and a more effective method for penetrating the blood-brain barrier,” based on the results of the collaboration of to-BBB. There was no mention of why there is a need for new molecules and a more effective delivery method. Still, NeuroVive said its new partnership is already showing positive signs as the collaboration with Isomerase has generated new lead compounds that are in pre-clinical evaluation.
With the support of the chemistry platform NeuroVive acquired from Biotica in 2013, and new models for studies on penetration of the blood-brain barrier, the objective is to identify drug candidates for clinical development, mainly for the treatment of stroke, the company said in a press release.
The only drug currently only approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treatment of ischemic stroke is the clot-busting drug Alteplase, which is sold under the brand name Activase. The Genentech drug is currently only approved to be given to patients within three hours of the onset of ischemic stroke.
“The initiative we’ve now begun with Isomerase Therapeutics is based on the results of our earlier project, but we’re now continuing the work with the molecules based on the same chemistry platform as for NVP018/NVP019, which we view as the next generation cyclophilin inhibitor. We’re also developing a new method for improved penetration across the blood-brain barrier compared to to-BBB’s preparation,” Magnus Hansson, senior scientist at NeuroVive, said in a press release.
Hansson added new funding strategies has increased the company’s chances of “developing effective drug candidates for the treatment of ischemic stroke.” According to the Mayo Clinic ischemic strokes account for approximately 80 percent of all strokes and are the result of an artery in the brain becoming blocked, leading to a loss of blood flow. Aspirin regimens are sometimes recommended to prevent ischemic strokes.
NeuroVive is developing a portfolio of products to treat acute cardiovascular and neurological conditions through mitochondrial protection. NeuroVive’s products CicloMulsion (myocardial infarct) and NeuroSTAT (traumatic brain injury) are currently being evaluated in phase III and phase II studies, respectively.
BBB Therapeutics is developing treatments for brain metastases and primary brain tumors. The company has more than 80 patients in clinical trials for its neuro-oncology lead product candidate, 2B3-101. Additionally, BBB Therapeutics announced promising safety data for its candidate 2B3-201, indicated for neuroinflammatory diseases, including multiple sclerosis acute relapses, optic neuritis and uveitis.
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