PeptiDream Inc., a public Tokyo-based biopharmaceutical company, announced that it has entered into research collaboration with US-based BIND Therapeutics. PeptiDream intends to use its Peptide Discovery Platform System (PDPS) technology to identify macrocyclic peptides that can be utilized as biologically active targeting ligands with BIND’s proprietary Accurin nanoparticles (ACCURINS). BIND has selected targeting ligands of interest to accelerate the company’s innovative medicines strategy focused on products that elicit tumor cell death and modulate the tumor microenvironment to maximize clinical benefit for patients.
“Targeting ligand collaborations are an integral part of our innovative medicines strategy to develop ACCURINS that elicit tumor cell death and modulate the tumor microenviroment”
ACCURINS are polymeric nanoparticles that encapsulate and control the release of therapeutic payloads with diverse physical and chemical properties. The surface of ACCURINS can be functionalized with ligands to elicit a biological response and enhance disease tissue accumulation. We believe combining these Accurin attributes provides a high value platform for innovative medicine discovery. PeptiDream and BIND’s collaboration is designed to investigate the use of PeptiDream’s macrocyclic peptides as the targeting ligand component for ACCURINSaimed at modulating anti-tumor immunity.
Kiichi Kubota, president & CEO of PeptiDream Inc said “We are extremely excited about the opportunity to collaborate with BIND to investigate the use of our macrocyclic peptides as the targeting ligand on BIND’s Accurin nanoparticles. BIND is the leader in the nanomedicine space and we believe there are excellent synergies between the two companies that could lead to the discovery and development of some truly novel therapeutics. This strategic collaboration represents a further expansion of PeptiDream’s PDC efforts and highlights another major area in which our peptides can be used to accelerate the next generation of breakthrough therapeutics.”
PeptiDream has a growing number of internal peptide-drug-conjugate (PDC) programs underway, in which the peptide functions, not as the drug, but to target drugs (therapeutic cargos) to specific cells or tissues thereby increasing their efficacy while reducing adverse side effects. The therapeutic cargos that can be combined with PeptiDream’s peptides to produce PDCs is virtually limitless. Such cargos can be toxins, small molecule drugs, nanoparticles containing drugs (represented here in the collaboration with BIND), radioisotope drugs, oligo drugs, antibody recruitment compounds, and a variety of other exciting new classes of therapeutic cargos and modalities.
“Targeting ligand collaborations are an integral part of our innovative medicines strategy to develop ACCURINS that elicit tumor cell death and modulate the tumor microenviroment,” said Jonathan Yingling, Ph.D., chief scientific officer of BIND Therapeutics. “PeptiDream’s Peptide Discovery Platform System allows BIND to access prioritized peptide ligands which in combination with new classes of encapsulated payloads create potential for synergy within the Accurin medicine. We believe this collaboration with PeptiDream is a significant step forward as we further advance our innovative medicines portfolio.”
Today’s announcement represents the second strategic collaboration PeptiDream has commenced to investigate PeptiDream’s peptides for use in peptide-drug-conjugate therapeutics (collaboration with JCR Pharma previously announced to identify peptide capable of delivering therapeutic cargo to the brain). PeptiDream will continue to seek out strategic partnerships in an effort to fully leverage the power of PeptiDream’s peptides for use in PDC therapeutics.
In the past six years, PeptiDream has established funded discovery collaborations with 16 of the leading global pharmaceutical companies; Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers-Squibb, Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis, Mitsubishi Tanabe, Daiichi Sankyo, Merck, Sanofi, Teijin, Kyorin, Ipsen, Genentech, Shionogi, and Asahi Kasei Pharma, all of which are active and ongoing. In addition, PeptiDream has transferred its PDPS discovery platform for broad use to Bristol-Myers-Squibb, Novartis, and Lilly.