Humanised mice30 Apr 2020 19:26
Humanised Mice
Immugenyx, LLC ("Immugenyx"), the Company's wholly owned subsidiary, developed a further improved version of its humanised mice, termed the Advanced peripheral blood Hematopoietic Chimera ("ApbHC") that presents several advantages over other mouse models. The ApbHC was initially developed as a research and development tool for the investigation of mature blood cell populations such as human T-cells, B-cells and antibody-producing plasma cells. A major advantage of the ApbHC is the absence of Graft versus Host Disease ("GvHD"), a disease that complicates and often renders impossible the efficient use of peripheral blood mononuclear cells in transplanted mice, shortening their lifespan and suitability for testing.
The ApbHC has a broad range of applications. Hemogenyx has demonstrated that the ApbHC can potentially be used for testing multi-specific antibodies, including its own bi-specific CDX antibody for the elimination of AML and the conditioning of patients for bone marrow transplantation. ApbHC may also be used for the development and testing of new cell therapies involving immune cell reprogramming, such as CAR-T. Immugenyx has further demonstrated that the ApbHC can potentially be used for the modelling of autoimmune diseases, such as Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (aka Lupus), with a goal of developing fundamentally new treatments for those diseases. The Directors also believe that the ApbHC could potentially be used as a tool for the rapid development and/or isolation of human antibodies against previously unknown viruses such as the novel coronavirus or other natural or engineered human-specific pathogens, referred to in biodefence circles as "Disease X".
As with the original Advanced Hematopoietic Chimera, the Company believes that the ApbHC will be of considerable interest to other drug developers and interest shown to date is promising.
Immugenyx entered into a research agreement with the above-mentioned GlobalCo to develop the ApbHC as a tool for drug development and testing, as announced on 23 October 2019. If the first phase of research produces successful results, Hemogenyx anticipates that further research will be commissioned, as has been the case with other trials using the Company's humanised mice. According to the agreement, Immugenyx will grant to GlobalCo a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to any know-how and any patent(s) and patent application(s) arising from the agreement to use solely for its own research and product development purposes. Immugenyx will also grant to GlobalCo an option to an exclusive licence of any patents or patent applications arising from the Agreement. The terms of the exclusive licence will be negotiated in good faith and on reasonable commercial terms at the time GlobalCo exercises its option.
Immugenyx has already completed or entered into humanised mouse related projects with a number of other large pharmaceutical companies, inc
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