Agreement With Karolinska13 Aug 2018 07:40
Just re reading that RNS again...................................
Scancell Holdings plc, ('Scancell' or the 'Company') the developer of novel immunotherapies for the treatment of cancer, announces that it has embarked on a strategic research collaboration with scientists at the Rheumatology Unit at Karolinska Institutet, Sweden, led by Professors Lars Klareskog and Vivianne Malmström. The collaboration will further explore the scientific and clinical role of citrullinated proteins in the treatment of cancer.
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Scancell's Moditope® platform technology overcomes the immune suppression induced by tumours themselves, allowing activated T cells to seek out and kill tumour cells that would otherwise be hidden from the immune system. This is achieved by stimulating the production of CD4+ T cells using citrullinated tumour-associated peptide epitopes, which overcome self-tolerance and destroy tumour cells.
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The teams of Professors Klareskog and Malmström have uncovered a central role for citrullinated proteins in the pathogenesis of the autoimmune disease rheumatoid arthritis. Conversely, Scancell has discovered that citrullinated proteins are also targets on cancer cells and this underpins the use of citrullinated peptides in the Company's Moditope® cancer immunotherapy platform.
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The groups of Professors Klareskog and Malmström perform world-leading research in the area of rheumatology and their work has been published in a number of leading academic journals, including Nature, Lancet, Arthritis & Rheumatism, Nature Medicine, Nature Genetics and Annual Review of Immunology.
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Professor Lindy Durrant, Joint CEO of Scancell and Professor of Cancer Immunotherapy at Nottingham University, commented:
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"Our research has previously shown that citrullinated proteins are involved in the control of tumour growth, which led us to the development of the Moditope® platform. The teams of professors Klareskog and Malmström have developed an understanding of the role of citrullinated proteins in the pathogenesis of the autoimmune disease, rheumatoid arthritis. We believe that this strategic collaboration with Karolinska will enhance our joint understanding of the role that citrullination plays in both cancer and rheumatoid arthritis, and will help us develop the Moditope® platform to its full potential."
I really do think that is a great RNS. Hard currency buys us human resources to develop our platforms as much as we can, this agreement with Karolinska has bought two professors and their teams to Moditope. I wonder what the cost of that would be in hard currency?? It is as impressive as the leaders that make up our team in Grand Challenge, surely for a small biotech which we are our development is attracting the leading minds in Oncology. I loathe to say it but i can think of a couple of AIM shares where news like this would cause a rush of excitement.