Rockville, MD. Rise Therapeutics, a biotechnology company developing first-in-class targeted immunological-based biologics using a unique and proprietary oral delivery platform, highlighted today a new publication in the journal Science that highlights mechanisms by which the microbiota engage host immune pathways to improve immunotherapy. The article examines recent pre-clinical studies that found that the peptidoglycan hydrolase Secrete Antigen A (SagA) is able to promote immunotherapy responses and synergize with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) to drive tumor regression in animal model studies. These results support development of novel synthetic biology medicines to be used in conjunction with ICI therapy.
The article examines recent pre-clinical studies that found that the peptidoglycan hydrolase Secrete Antigen A (SagA) is able to promote immunotherapy responses and synergize with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) to drive tumor regression in animal model studies. These results support development of novel synthetic biology medicines to be used in conjunction with ICI therapy.
“The data presented in this article reinforces the importance of the microbiome in the context of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy of cancer and identifies a key microbiome-associated molecule that can effectively enhance immunotherapy treatments for cancer,” said Dr. Gary Fanger, CEO and President of Rise Therapeutics. “We are currently harnessing orally administered, synthetic biology-based medicines that deliver a targeted drug able to engage immunological pathways that synergize and make immune checkpoint therapy more effective.”
Our bodies co-exist with a community of trillions of microbes, the microbiome, that form a symbiotic relationship with us. As a result, dysregulation of our microbiota can play a role in immunological related diseases including autoimmunity and cancer. Thus, understanding the microbiome can lead to identification of novel targets for disease therapy. Rise has embarked on strategies that enable us to leverage identification of unique and novel microbiome-related immunological pathways and targets to develop novel medicines using its proprietary oral delivery platform, TriPartite X (TPX). TPX is a novel DNA assembly approach that allows for creation of synthetic biology-based medicines to escort targeted protein therapies to the site of action in the intestinal space. These targeted protein-based therapies are encapsulated and delivered orally for treatment of a wide range of diseases.
While defined microbiome commensal strains may offer as alternatives to help treat cancer in combination with ICI therapy, many strains are not suitable for human use (including SagA positive Enterococci) and the mechanism of action is difficult to characterize making drug development challenging. However, in line with this article’s findings, recent results demonstrate that engineering or ‘reprogramming’ of probiotics to recombinantly express and deliver SagA to the intestinal tract can impact immune responsiveness of cancer and greatly enhances the effectiveness of checkpoint targeting immunotherapy.
About Rise Therapeutics
Rise Therapeutics is an emerging, privately held company located in Rockville, Maryland which leverages its expertise in synthetic biology and immunological drug development to create novel cellular-based immune therapies. With a strong emphasis on product development and its internal clinical GMP manufacturing infrastructure, Rise is focused on developing immunological-based biological medicines using a unique and proprietary oral biologics delivery platform. Unlike traditional biological therapies which require injection or infusion, Rise Therapeutics’ delivery platform allows simple, convenient, and cost-effective oral capsule delivery of targeted protein therapy. Our drug development focus is driven by new microbiome-related discoveries enabling development of targeted, first-in-class immune modulatory drugs for the treatment of inflammation, autoimmunity, cancer, and infection. In the context of its expertise in synthetic biology medicine, proprietary TPX oral drug delivery platform, and clinical GMP manufacturing capabilities, Rise is creating and rapidly advancing life changing cellular-based medicines to the market. For more information, go to www.risetherapeutics.com.