BioTesserae Conducts Milestone First in Dog Studies with Proprietary PD-1 Single Domain Antibody
BioTesserae Inc. (BTC), a biotechnology company focused on innovative veterinary therapeutics, in collaboration with Sunflower Therapeutics PBC, a public benefit corporation transforming global access to protein manufacturing capacity for diverse applications, today announced that BTC-001 was well tolerated in healthy dogs following a single ascending dose study. BTC-001 is a single domain antibody (SdA) that recognizes the immune checkpoint inhibitor PD-1 and is part of BioTesserae’s growing portfolio of biologic drugs for the treatment of cancer in companion animals.
Cancer is one of the leading causes of death for all dog breeds in the U.S. and treatment options are limited. BioTesserae’s innovative approach leverages the success of human cancer therapies such as Opdivo and Keytruda. BTC-001 is simpler than typical oncology biologic drugs making it conducive to streamlined manufacturing, and allowing for more flexible treatment options for pet owners and veterinarians. BioTesserae is working in collaboration with Sunflower Therapeutics PBC to develop novel product compositions, formulations, and manufacturing methods for BTC-001 using Sunflower’s yeast-based biomanufacturing platform.
“This study addresses two key milestones for BioTesserae. First, we demonstrated that the proprietary single domain antibody to PD-1 (BTC-001) is well tolerated in dogs following a single dose up to three times the anticipated therapeutic dose. Second, we accomplished the synthesis, purification, concentration, and release of the single domain antibody in yeast at pilot scale,” said Dr. Patrick Iversen, CEO of BioTesserae Inc.
“Through the completion of this study, we have shown how our engineered yeast host and a product optimization approach centered on manufacturability-by-design can enable the production of novel high-quality protein-based veterinary therapies in meaningful quantities for clinical and commercial development,” said Dr. Laura Crowell Orella, Director of R&D at Sunflower Therapeutics. “In partnership with BioTesserae, we are achieving significant milestones in the development of affordable solutions for canine cancer.”
About BioTesserae
BioTesserae is an emerging biotechnology company dedicated to accelerating access to cutting-edge immune therapies, helping pet owners safely extend the length and quality of life of their animal companions. We develop single domain antibody-based immunotherapies intended for canine cancer treatment. The company's platform utilizes single-domain antibody fragments to modulate the canine immune system and specifically target malignant cells, enabling the veterinary healthcare market to access precision biological treatments that improve clinical outcomes and survival rates for dogs suffering from various oncological conditions.
About Sunflower Therapeutics
Sunflower Therapeutics is a unique biotech with a mission to transform bioeconomies worldwide by creating accessible solutions for protein product development and commercial manufacturing. Using our core technologies – an efficient host, data-driven methods and Contract Research Organization (CRO) services for process development, and continuous biomanufacturing equipment – our team aims to democratize bioprocessing.
Source: www.biotesserae.com
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