On July 5, 2023 Boostimmune reported on the 5th that ‘BIO-101’, a translationally-controlled tumor protein (TCTP) antibody with a mechanism targeting immunosuppressive cells, was selected as a candidate material stage support project by the National New Drug Development Agency (KDDF) (Press release, Boostimmune, JUL 5, 2023, View Source [SID1234634477]).
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According to this task selection, BoostImmune will receive R&D support of 900 million won (based on government subsidies) over the next two years with the goal of deriving preclinical candidate substances.
TCTP is known to originally function as a cytosolic protein, but when it is released to the outside through apoptosis such as necrosis of tumor cells, myeloid derived suppressor cells (MDSC) are recruited within the tumor. The company judges that it contributes to cancer growth by inducing an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME). Conversely, when TCTP was inhibited by a knock-out mouse model or drug, it was observed that the ratio of MDSC in tumors decreased and cancer growth was suppressed through TLR2.
Immunologist Tadatsugu Taniguchi, emeritus professor at the University of Tokyo, who expressed interleukin (IL-2), interferon beta (IFN-β), HMGB1, and IRF, identified the possibility of TCTP as a drug target, and in 2021, Nature Immun Two papers have been published in Nology (doi: 10.1038/s41590-021-00967-5, 10.1038/s41590-021-00986-2).
Kwang-Hee Lee, CEO of BoostImmune, said, "We plan to accelerate the development of TCTP target antibodies using the selection of this national new drug development project support project as a stepping stone to confirm preclinical candidate materials in a short time."
Boost Immune plans to jointly research and develop blood biomarkers for the TCTP task in cooperation with the oncology research team at Asan Medical Center in Seoul.
Boost Immune is a biotech company that develops new anti-cancer drugs co-founded in 2021 by CEO Lee Kwang-hee and Professor Tadatsugu Taniguchi. Boost Immune is conducting tasks such as immuno-oncology drugs targeting myeloid cells, antibody drug conjugates (ADC), and immune-activating antibodies (ISAC).