Opsona Therapeutics, the biotechnology company focused on novel therapeutic and preventative approaches to autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, has signed a research and collaboration agreement with the global specialty biopharmaceutical company CSL Limited. The collaboration covers the identification of novel vaccine adjuvant formulations, based on Opsona's proprietary technology OpsoVac which could target infectious diseases and certain cancers.

Under the agreement Opsona will receive undisclosed upfront payments and will be eligible for additional milestone and royalty payments should CSL elect to pursue formulations that result from the collaboration.

Mark Heffernan, CEO of Opsona said, "CSL has an excellent track record in the field of vaccines and the announcement is a significant validation of the OpsoVac technology. OpsoVac has the potential to significantly improve the efficacy of immunotherapy against tumours and of vaccine-induced protective immunity against infection."

The OpsoVac technology was exclusively licensed to Opsona from Trinity College, Dublin (TCD), where it was discovered by Professor Kingston Mills, Head of the School of Biochemistry and Immunology, and a co-founder of Opsona. Prof Mills has identified a novel Toll-like Receptor (TLR) platform involving the co-administration of a TLR agonist with molecules that inhibit T-regulatory cells. Depletion of T-regulatory cells has been shown to enhance anti-tumour immunity in disease models.

Dr Andrew Cuthbertson CSL CSO, said, "CSL is a leading innovator in the development of vaccines and approaches to immunotherapy. Inhibition of T-regulatory cells is a promising approach to enhancing the effectiveness of both cancer immuno-therapeutics and vaccines against chronic infectious diseases such as hepatitis and influenza, and we look forward to working with Opsona in this important area."

Opsona is a drug development company, focused on novel therapeutic and preventative approaches to autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. The company was founded in 2004 by three of Trinity College Dublin's respected Immunologists Kingston Mills, Dermot Kelleher and Luke O'Neill.

With major facilities in Australia, Germany, Switzerland and the US, CSL has over 9,000 employees working in 27 countries. The CSL Group has a combined heritage of outstanding contribution to medicine and human health with more than 90 years experience in the development and manufacture of vaccines and plasma protein biotherapies.