VICTORIA, BC, Dec. 11, 2020 /CNW/ - IMMUNOPRECISE ANTIBODIES
LTD. (the "Company" or "IPA") (TSXV: IPA) (OTCQB: IPATD) (FSE:
TQB2), a leader in full-service, therapeutic antibody discovery and
development, today announced that it has entered into a research
collaboration with the National Research
Council of Canada's (NRC)
Human Health Therapeutics (HHT) Research Centre to develop its
neutralizing PolyTope™ antibodies against SARS-CoV-2.
IPA is also considering acquiring a license for the NRC CHO
cell-based rapid expression platform to be used in pre-clinical and
clinical manufacturing of their lead monoclonal antibodies.
Researchers from the NRC's HHT Research Centre will deploy the
CHO-based expression platform to accelerate the identification and
development of IPA's lead antibody candidates.
The NRC is supporting this research through the Pandemic
Response Challenge Program (PRCP) and the Industrial Research
Assistance Program (IRAP). The project is also in collaboration
with Zymeworks Inc. (NYSE: ZYME) for the design and development of
IPA's lead antibody candidates. ImmunoPrecise identified antibodies
directed against the SARS-CoV-2 virus spike protein during the
summer of 2020 by screening tens of thousands of antibodies from
multiple sources and converging upon a panel of candidates that
showed in vitro functional activity and synergistic effects
in pseudovirus-based neutralization assays. Top neutralizing
antibodies have been progressed for preclinical testing in the
PolyTope™ Therapy program.
IPA considers the NRC to be a partner of choice to develop and
manufacture their antibody therapeutics, as the NRC is uniquely
positioned in Canada to address
the various facets of this project having integrated,
multi-disciplinary biologics research facilities based in Montréal
and Ottawa.
"IPA is pleased to contribute to this Canadian endeavor with the
NRC and Zymeworks," stated Jennifer
Bath, CEO of ImmunoPrecise. "IPA is proud to embark on
its first collaboration with the NRC, as we continue to establish
ourselves as a key player in the Canadian life science ecosystem
and in the current pandemic. We believe this partnership between
the NRC (HHT, PRCP and IRAP) and Zymeworks to have tremendous
potential to generate best-in-class SARS-CoV-2 therapeutics within
this expert and motivated team environment in Canada."
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. ImmunoPrecise's full-service
capabilities dramatically reduce the time required for, and the
inherent risk associated with, conventional multi-vendor product
development. 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 or
vaccines to be further developed or approved to treat or protect
against 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 July31st, 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
View original content to download
multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/immunoprecise-collaboration-enables-preclinical-manufacturing-of-lead-antibodies-targeting-sars-cov-2-301191080.html
SOURCE ImmunoPrecise Antibodies Ltd.
