On January 16, 2024 Cellectis (Euronext Growth: ALCLS – NASDAQ: CLLS) (the "Company"), a clinical-stage biotechnology company using its pioneering gene-editing platform to develop life-saving cell and gene therapies, reported that it has drawn down the second tranche of €15 million ("Tranche B") under the credit facility agreement for up to €40 million entered into with the European Investment Bank (the "EIB) on December 28, 2022 (the "Finance Contract") (Press release, Cellectis, JAN 16, 2024, View Source [SID1234639254]). Tranche B is expected to be disbursed by the EIB by January 25, 2024. The Company plans to use the proceeds of Tranche B towards the development of its pipeline of allogeneic CAR T-cell product candidates: UCART22, UCART20x22, and UCART123.

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As a condition to the disbursement of Tranche B the Company issued 1,460,053 warrants to the benefit of the EIB, in accordance with the terms of the 14th resolution of the shareholders’ meeting held on June 27, 2023 and articles L. 228-91 and seq. of the French Commercial Code (the "Tranche B Warrants").

Each Tranche B Warrant allows the EIB to subscribe for one ordinary share of the Company, at a price of €2.53, corresponding to 99% of the volume-weighted average price of the Company’s ordinary shares over the last 3 trading days preceding the decision of the board of directors of the Company to issue the Tranche B Warrants. The total number of shares issuable upon exercise of the Tranche B Warrants represents circa 2% of the Company’s outstanding share capital as at their issuance date.

Tranche B will mature six years from its disbursement date and will accrue interest at a rate of 7% per annum capitalized annually and payable at maturity.

The other terms of the Tranche B Warrants and prepayment events of Tranche B under the Finance Contract are as set forth in the Company’s press release of April 4, 2023 and Form 6-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on such date.

The Finance Agreement allows the Company to drawdown a third tranche, of a maximum amount of €5 million, subject to certain conditions, including issuance of a specified number of additional warrants to the benefit of the EIB.

On January 16, 2024 BullFrog AI Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: BFRG; BFRGW) ("BullFrog AI" or the "Company"), a technology-enabled drug development company using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to enable the successful development of pharmaceuticals and biologics, reported that the Australian Patent Office has issued Patent No. 2019216757 protecting the Company’s novel prodrugs derived from mebendazole and their use in treating cancers and other diseases (Press release, Bullfrog AI, JAN 16, 2024, View Source [SID1234639253]). This follows the July 2023 announcement of the issuance of U.S. Patent No. 11,712,435 for this invention (link), with issuance of patents expected in additional territories in the future.

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The patented compounds exhibit improved solubility and oral bioavailability relative to the parent drug, thereby addressing a key difficulty associated with the potential use of mebendazole for oncology indications, and include BF-223, a key asset in the Company’s pipeline of in-licensed drugs. The Company previously announced positive results from a preclinical study demonstrating that BF-223 has anticancer activity in an animal model for glioblastoma (link).

"This patent grant further strengthens intellectual property protection of this key asset in our pipeline," said Vin Singh, founder and CEO of BullFrog AI. "Mebendazole has shown promise in treating various types of cancer, and the results of our preclinical study evaluating BF-223 in an animal model of glioblastoma support our thesis that prodrugs of mebendazole may provide enhanced therapeutic potential, thereby improving the likelihood of clinical success. We look forward to working with strategic partners to monetize this promising asset for the treatment of glioblastoma and other oncology indications."

On January 16, 2024 Bio-Techne Corporation (NASDAQ: TECH) reported that management will host a conference call and webcast on Thursday, February 1, 2024, at 8:00 a.m. CST to review second quarter fiscal 2024 financial results (Press release, Bio-Techne, JAN 16, 2024, https://investors.bio-techne.com/news/detail/401/bio-techne-to-host-conference-call-on-february-1-2024-to-announce-second-quarter-fiscal-2024-financial-results [SID1234639252]).

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Access to the discussion may be obtained as follows:

Time:

8:00 a.m. CST

Date:

February 1, 2024

Dial-in:

1-877-407-9208 or 1-201-493-6784 (for international callers)

Conference ID:

13743935

Webcast:

View Source

A recorded rebroadcast will be available for interested parties unable to participate in the live conference call by dialing 1-844-512-2921 or 1-412-317-6671 (for international callers) and referencing Conference ID 13743935.

The replay will be available from 11:00 a.m. CST on Thursday, February 1, 2024, until 11:00 p.m. CST on Friday, March 1, 2024.

On January 16, 2024 Bexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a new generation of biologic therapy to treat solid tumor cancers and chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN), reported a Trials in Progress poster presentation at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) (Free ASCO Whitepaper) Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium (ASCO GI), being held January 18-20, 2024, in San Francisco, CA (Press release, Bexion, JAN 16, 2024, View Source [SID1234639251]). Poster details are included below.

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Poster Details:

Session Title: Trials in Progress Poster Session C: Cancers of the Colon, Rectum, and Anus
Session Date: January 20th, 2024
Abstract Number: TPS224
Abstract Title: "BXQ-350: A phase 1b/2 placebo controlled, double blinded study on the efficacy and safety of BXQ-350 in combination with mFOLFOX7 and bevacizumab in newly diagnosed metastatic colorectal carcinoma (mCRC)."

"We are excited to present our ongoing trial of BXQ-350 in mCRC during the 2024 ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) GI Symposium" said Scott Shively, CEO and President of Bexion Pharmaceuticals. "BXQ-350 in combination with FOLFOX and bevacizumab offers a unique opportunity to improve outcomes for 1st line patients with mCRC. We look forward to sharing progress with investigators and leaders at the conference."

About BXQ-350
Bexion’s lead drug candidate is BXQ-350, a first-in-class biologic containing the multifunctional, sphingolipid activator protein, Saposin C, and a phospholipid. BXQ-350 has pre-clinical antitumor effects in vitro and in vivo, particularly in colorectal, brain and other solid tumors. Two Phase 1 clinical trials, one in adults and one in pediatric DIPG patients, demonstrated a strong safety profile for BXQ-350 with evidence of single agent activity across multiple solid tumors. Additionally, other clinical and non-clinical data suggest BXQ-350 has activity in chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy.

On January 16, 2024 Alligator Bioscience (Nasdaq Stockholm: ATORX) reported that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued U.S. Patent No. US 11,873,348 covering ATOR-4066, a Neo-X-Prime next generation bispecific antibody targeting CD40 and CEACAM5, in the treatment of cancer (Press release, Alligator Bioscience, JAN 16, 2024, View Source [SID1234639250]).

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The patent, titled "Novel peptides", provides ATOR-4066 with protection regarding methods of treating cancer and/or a tumor using a bispecific antibody comprising the complementarity-determining regions (CDRs) of the ATOR-4066 molecule.

The patent is the first patent of the ATOR-4066 intellectual property portfolio which is expected to strengthen as more patents are filed and granted. Its accelerated application was part of the Cancer Immunotherapy Pilot program, which provided a fast-track review for cancer immunotherapy-related patent applications in the U.S.

"By simultaneously targeting CD40 and a tumor associated antigen, ATOR-4066 has demonstrated superior anti-tumor immunity, and we see medical opportunities for this first-in-class preclinical asset in , multiple cancer indications, targeting both cold and hot tumor types " said Søren Bregenholt, CEO of Alligator Bioscience. "The granting of this patent is an important step in the ongoing development of ATOR-4066 and we place great emphasis on the protection of our intellectual property as a key component of our drug development program and our overall business strategy."
ATOR-4066 was developed by Alligator’s proprietary Neo-X-Prime platform that generates bispecific conditional antibody agonists able to significantly boost dendritic cells and T-cell activation by connecting them to tumor debris.