VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Sept. 11, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pascal Biosciences Inc. (TSX-V:PAS) (“Pascal” or
the “Company”), a drug discovery and development company, today announced that the Company has executed an exclusive, worldwide
license option agreement with STC.UNM (“STC”), the University of New Mexico’s (“UNM”) technology-transfer and economic-development
organization, to acquire a therapeutic monoclonal antibody for B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP-ALL).
ALL is the most common childhood cancer, peaking around two to five years of age, and is also seen in older adults above age
fifty. This disease is caused by mutations during the early development of lymphocytes. Tumor cells from the majority of ALL
patients express the marker VpreB1, a subunit of the pre–B cell receptor (pre-BCR). Dr. Bridget S. Wilson and Dr. Stuart S. Winter
and their colleagues at the UNM Comprehensive Cancer Center have discovered a high-affinity, fully human monoclonal antibody
specific for VpreB1 that kills ALL tumor cells in cell culture. Expression of this marker is limited to leukemic cells and a small
subset of developing immune cells called pre-B cells. Therefore, targeting VpreB1 specifically eliminates the tumor cells, while
sparing the more mature memory B cells that are essential to the immune system in combating infection. In contrast, drugs targeting
more broadly expressed markers, such as CD19, destroy not only the pre-B leukemia cells but also the more mature B cells.
Therefore, this VpreB1-targeted therapy is likely to be much safer than chemotherapy, which destroys all growing cells and has
significant detrimental side effects.
“Due to its bivalent nature, the pre-BCR is a particularly novel and ideal antigen for chimeric antigen receptor T-cell
(“CAR-T”) therapy,” says Dr. Wilson. “And, since crosslinking of the pre-BCR leads to rapid endocytosis, anti-VpreB1
antibodies are ideal for drug delivery. We look forward to working with Pascal on advancing this discovery into human clinical
trials.” The UNM technology covers all VpreB1-targeted therapeutics such as antibody-drug conjugates and CAR-T therapy. Pascal will
also work with UNM to develop a diagnostic screen to determine which patients will best respond to therapy targeting VpreB1.
“We are very pleased to acquire this novel technology from UNM, and we look forward to working closely with Drs. Wilson and
Winter. Fortunately, most patients with this devastating disease can be cured with standard chemotherapy. However, those that fail
chemotherapy usually have poor outcomes, and we believe VpreB1 therapy has great potential to treat these patients,” commented Dr.
Patrick Gray, CEO of Pascal. “In addition, young patients that receive chemotherapy often develop other cancers as they mature, so
a more targeted therapy focused on VpreB1 may prevent future serious complications.”
“This innovation involves a less-toxic cancer therapy that has the potential to improve quality of life and decrease mortality
rates in leukemia patients. We feel very fortunate to be partnering with Pascal Biosciences to bring this technology to
market,” added Lisa Kuuttila, CEO & Chief Economic Development Officer of STC. This exclusive option agreement grants Pascal six
months to license the UNM technology, and this option may be extended by an additional twelve months.
ABOUT PASCAL BIOSCIENCES INC.
Pascal focuses on harnessing the body’s immune system to fight cancer, autoimmune disorders, and infectious disease. The Company’s
three significant technologies are:
- Utilizing proprietary screening systems for identifying novel compounds that are able to restore immune recognition
and killing of cancer cells;
- Exploiting the regulation of specific calcium channels expressed by cells of the immune system. By regulating these calcium
channels, immune activity can be controlled to combat cancers, infections and autoimmune diseases; and
- Modulating CD74, a protein involved in the immune system, to promote immune responses to cancer and pathogenic microbes.
Finding molecules that regulate CD74 activity will aid the immune system to combat infections and cancers and to control
autoimmune diseases.
To learn more, visit: https://www.pascalbiosciences.com/.
ABOUT STC.UNM
As the technology-transfer and economic-development organization for the University of New Mexico, STC.UNM protects and
commercializes technologies developed at UNM by filing patents and copyrights and transferring them to the marketplace. STC
connects the business community (companies, entrepreneurs and investors) to UNM technologies for licensing opportunities and the
creation of start-up companies. STC’s vision is to play a vital role in New Mexico’s economic development and to be a leader in
technology commercialization. Under the leadership of CEO Lisa Kuuttila, STC is substantially growing its program using the
Rainforest model to develop an innovation economy in New Mexico. To learn more, visit: https://stc.unm.edu.
On Behalf of the Board of Directors
Dr. Patrick W. Gray, President & CEO
Company Contact:
Dr. Patrick Gray
Tel: 206-650-6575
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revenues, additional capital requirements, risk associated with the completion of clinical trials and obtaining regulatory approval
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