Chimeric Bait Receptor-programmed macrophages show promise for treatment of Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / November 27, 2023 / Hemogenyx Pharmaceuticals plc (LSE:HEMO), the biopharmaceutical group developing new therapies and treatments for blood diseases, is pleased to announce that its Chimeric Bait Receptor ("CBR") platform can potentially be used in the treatment of cancers, in addition to the viral diseases extensively reported by the Company to date.

The Company has demonstrated that human macrophages, a type of immune cells, programmed with a purpose designed CBR, were able to eliminate Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma ("NHL") derived cells with high efficiency in vitro. This result suggests that the Company may be able to develop an efficient treatment for people suffering from relapsed and/or refractory stage III/IV metastasized NHL. In addition, based on data derived from its testing of CBR in connection with NHL, the Company has reason to believe that the newly designed CBR construct can be adapted to target several solid tumours such as epithelial ovarian cancer as well as certain carcinomas.

The Company has been able to speed up its R&D efforts dramatically by using Artificial Intelligence ("AI") based protein structure/interaction simulations and in-house synthesis of messenger RNA ("mRNA"). AI tools allow the Company's scientists to triage variants of CBR constructs rapidly in order to select those with the greatest likelihood of success, while in-house mRNA synthesis facilitates the building of CBR constructs in a matter of just days.

Moreover, the Company has previously reported that it is testing CBR against live infectious SARS-Cov-2, the virus causing COVID-19. The Company has received preliminary results of tests of CBR against this live infectious virus. The results show that human macrophage cells programmed with CBR against SARS-CoV-2 are effective in in vitro experiments. These tests are being conducted by an external team of scientists in a biological level three ("BSL-3") facility. Additional work will be conducted to further optimize the method of application of cells programmed with CBR, as well as to obtain results in vivo (i.e., in a live animal model).

Dr Vladislav Sandler, CEO & Co-Founder of Hemogenyx Pharmaceuticals, commented: "This is an exciting breakthrough in proving the versatility of our CBR platform, greatly widening its potential use against cancers, in addition to the original pursuit of combatting viral infections. We are extremely pleased to see that CBR can potentially be used to develop new treatments for cancers such as NHL, as well as potentially for solid tumours, which are a significant challenge for existing therapies. We have also made meaningful advances in proving CBR's potential viability in treating COVID-19 and other viruses. We are hugely encouraged by these recent developments, and I am proud of Hemogenyx Pharmaceuticals' team of scientists who achieved this leap forward."

About NHL

NHL is a subtype of cancers called lymphomas that develop in the lymph system. NHL develops predominantly in adults, although children can also suffer from this disease. NHL is the 11^th most common cancer in humans, with roughly 540,000 new cases diagnosed globally and an estimated 260,000 deaths per year. In the US, NHL is estimated to affect 80,550 people, with 20,180 deaths resulting from this cancer in 2023 alone. The successful development of a new therapy for NHL would have a major impact on treatment and survival rates for the disease.

Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure

Certain information contained in this announcement would have been inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation No 596/2014 (as it forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018) until the release of this announcement.

The person responsible for arranging for the release of this announcement on behalf of Hemogenyx Pharmaceuticals plc is Dr Vladislav Sandler, Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder.

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About Hemogenyx Pharmaceuticals plc

Hemogenyx Pharmaceuticals is a publicly traded company (LSE: HEMO) headquartered in London, with its US operating subsidiaries, Hemogenyx Pharmaceuticals LLC and Immugenyx LLC, located in New York City at its state-of-the-art research facility.

The Company is a pre-clinical stage biopharmaceutical group developing new medicines and treatments to treat blood and autoimmune disease and to bring the curative power of bone marrow transplantation to a greater number of patients suffering from otherwise incurable life-threatening diseases. Hemogenyx Pharmaceuticals is developing several distinct and complementary product candidates, as well as a platform technology that it uses as an engine for novel product development.

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SOURCE: Hemogenyx Pharmaceuticals PLC