VICTORIA, BC, Nov. 23, 2020 /CNW/ - IMMUNOPRECISE
ANTIBODIES LTD. (the "Company" or "IPA") (TSX VENTURE: IPA) (OTCQB:
IPATF) (FSE: TQB2), a leader in full-service, therapeutic antibody
discovery and development, today announced that it has selected
more than ten, unique monoclonal antibodies for further preclinical
development.
The Polytope™ antibodies can be combined to create up to twelve
unique cocktail therapies containing mixtures of two, three or four
antibodies, each of which has been shown to work synergistically to
prevent viral entry into cells in vitro. The Company
announced today that it has nominated the first cocktail consisting
of four, human, synergistic antibodies to enter pre-clinical
testing. The upcoming pre-clinical trial will examine the safety,
tolerability and efficacy of the proposed therapeutic cocktail in
the well-defined, SARS-CoV-2, Syrian hamster model.
"We are excited to reach this milestone in what has been a very
comprehensive Covid-19 therapeutic study aimed at treating disease
caused by all Coronavirus variants, not to be thwarted by the
ongoing mutations of the rapidly circulating virus", said
ImmunoPrecise CEO, Dr. Jennifer
Bath. "Our scientific team chose a path of rigorous
investigation to arrive at a diverse set of functional and
meaningful candidates to combine into what we believe will be an
effective therapy against both current and future strains of
SARS-CoV-2. We did not sacrifice quality and we believe our
approach is the suitable and effectual path."
Antibodies not only cure diseased individuals, they may provide
immediate protection with a single injection to exposed individuals
or asymptomatic carriers, something a vaccine cannot do, enabling
containment of new outbreaks. ImmunoPrecise's Polytope therapy was
designed to provide additional potential benefits as a means of
long-term weaponry, a cocktail therapy designed with the goal of
protecting against disease that could potentially be caused by
novel mutations of the virus not covered by current vaccines and
therapies.
The Company believes their approach using a well-characterized,
monoclonal antibody cocktail to treat Covid-19 patients has high
potential for fighting not only the most prevalent strains of
SARS-CoV-2, but also the many alternate forms circulating today, as
well as potential new variants of the virus in the future.
IPA's curated antibody mixtures or "cocktails" have been
shown to bind to multiple regions of the spike protein of the
virus, including novel variations of the virus, caused by
mutations, that have been identified and published in literature.
The Company's antibodies provide a clear boost in neutralization
potency beyond what can be achieved with individual monoclonal
antibodies alone, suggesting a synergy that may allow for lower
dosing. Furthermore, engaging multiple antibodies in the fight
against the virus has the potential to stimulate different
mechanisms from the immune response to help clear infection,
thereby enhancing overall clearance of the virus and aiding in
recovery.
"Antibody cocktails that achieve full neutralization are
advantageous over monotherapies because a single antibody is
vulnerable to being escaped by even one mutation in the virus,
depending on where that mutation occurs", states Dr. Yasmina
Abdiche, CSO of ImmunoPrecise. "In contrast, our cocktail
engages multiple antibodies at once, broadening what we refer to as
the "epitope footprint", or the regions on the virus where the
antibodies bind. This provides insurance that the mutating virus
cannot evade the treatment, which is a continuous threat as
pathogens evolve", added Dr. Abdiche.
The Companies antibody cocktails were designed specifically
with the intent to address the high mutation rates found in RNA
viruses (such as SARS-CoV-2), which mutate up to a million times
faster than human DNA—and which have the possibility of correlating
with an increased ability to cause disease. These higher mutation
rates increase the chance of introducing traits which are
considered advantageous to the virus.
"In fact, as anticipated, there are hundreds of documented
mutations in the binding domain of the virus' spike protein, which
also happens to be the region most companies are targeting. A few
of these mutations are now emerging as significant", stated Dr.
Ilse Roodink, IPA's Coronavirus global Program Lead. "This creates
a 'moving target situation', underpinning the importance of
deploying numerous antibodies to attack the virus in concert, and
building insurance into our cocktail therapy that it will remain
effective as the virus continues to evolve".
Pre-clinical manufacturing of the fully human lead, 4-mAb
candidates is underway, with the pre-clinical studies scheduled to
launch in early January in the
Netherlands. The Company is also producing pre-clinical
batches of additional, validated candidates to provide a panel of
alternate options to modify the coverage of therapeutic cocktails
if ever needed, to continue to combat future and/or seasonal
variants of the virus.
About ImmunoPrecise Antibodies Ltd.
ImmunoPrecise is
a global technology platform company with end-to-end solutions
empowering companies to discover and develop therapies against any
disease. The Company's experience and cutting-edge technologies
enable unparalleled support of its partners in their quest to bring
innovative treatments to the clinic. For further information, visit
www.immunoprecise.com or contact solutions@immunoprecise.com.
About IPA's SARS Polytope™ Therapies
Monoclonal
antibodies were derived from several animal species, including
humans, llama, rabbits and transgenic OmniAb® (humanized) animals
to access a broad epitope coverage. IPA exploits multiple antibody
formats, valency, and size to select antibodies against
multiple/rare epitopes. In a global effort involving its scientists
in North America and Europe, IPA has now developed a rich and
diverse discovery portfolio of SARS-CoV-2 candidate antibodies
yielding epitope and functional diversity.
Forward Looking Information
This news release
contains statements that, to the extent they are not recitations of
historical fact, may constitute "forward-looking statements" within
the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. The Company
uses words such as "may", "would", "could", "will", "likely",
"expect", "believe", "intend", "should" and similar expressions to
identify forward-looking statements and include the Company's
beliefs with respect to the potential for its antibodies to be
further developed or approved to treat COVID-19 (or SARS-CoV-2)
or to complete any transactions with respect to those
antibodies. Any such forward-looking statements are based on
assumptions and analyses made by ImmunoPrecise in light of its
experience and its perception of historical trends, current
conditions and expected future developments. However, whether
actual results and developments will conform to ImmunoPrecise's
expectations and predictions is subject to any number of risks,
assumptions and uncertainties. Many factors could cause
ImmunoPrecise's actual results to differ materially from those
expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in
this news release. Such factors include, among other things, actual
revenues and earnings for IPA being lower than anticipated, and
those risks and uncertainties described in ImmunoPrecise's annual
management discussion and analysis for the previous quarter ended
July 31st, 2020 which can be accessed
at www.sedar.com. The "forward-looking statements"
contained herein speak only as of the date of this press release
and, unless required by applicable law, ImmunoPrecise undertakes no
obligation to publicly update or revise such information, whether
as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX
Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or
accuracy of this release. SOURCE ImmunoPrecise Antibodies
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