NetScientific PLC PDS Announces Clinical Collaboration with Merck (5853K)
10 July 2017 - 9:00PM
UK Regulatory
TIDMNSCI
RNS Number : 5853K
NetScientific PLC
10 July 2017
NetScientific plc
("NetScientific" or the "Company" or the "Group")
PDS Biotechnology Announces Clinical Collaboration with Merck
& Co., Inc.
London, UK - July 10(th) 2017 - NetScientific plc
("NetScientific", AIM:NSCI), the transatlantic IP commercialisation
group focused on healthcare, announces a new clinical trial
collaboration agreement between its portfolio company PDS
Biotechnology Corporation ("PDS") and a subsidiary of Merck &
Co., Inc. (known as MSD outside the United States and Canada). The
agreement will enable PDS to evaluate the combination of its
Versamune(R)-based PDS0101 immunotherapy treatment with Merck &
Co., Inc.'s anti-PD-1 therapy, KEYTRUDA(R) (pembrolizumab) in a
Phase II clinical trial.
The trial will focus on the safety and efficacy of the
combination treatment in patients with recurrent or metastatic head
and neck cancer and high-risk human papillomavirus-16 (HPV16)
infection after failure with platinum-based chemotherapy.
NetScientific holds an 17.4% stake (14.5% on a fully diluted
basis) in PDS.
Commenting on the news, NetScientific's Chief Executive Officer,
Francois R. Martelet said: "We believe this exciting collaboration
between PDS and Merck & Co., Inc. validates our confidence in
the Versamune(R) platform's potential to deliver superior outcomes
to cancer patients. Following on from this successful agreement we
look forward to commencing further clinical trials with additional
commercial partners."
The full text of the announcement from PDS Biotechnology can be
found below.
# # #
For more information, please contact:
NetScientific Tel: +44 (0)20 3514 1800
François R. Martelet,
M.D., CEO
Ian Postlethwaite,
CFO
Consilium Strategic
Communications Tel: +44 (0)20 3709 5700
Mary-Jane Elliott Jessica netscientific@consilium-comms.com
Hodgson /
Chris Welsh / Laura
Thornton
Stifel Nicolaus Europe Tel: +44 (0) 20 7710 7600
Limited (NOMAD and Broker)
Jonathan Senior / David
Arch / Ben Maddison
About NetScientific
NetScientific is a transatlantic healthcare technology group
with an investment strategy focused on sourcing, funding and
commercialising technologies that significantly improve the health
and well-being of people with chronic diseases. For more
information, please visit the website at www.netscientific.net
PDS Biotechnology Corp. Announces Clinical Collaboration with
Merck Inc. to Evaluate Combination of Versamune(R) PDS0101 and
KEYTRUDA(R) (pembrolizumab) for Metastatic Head and Neck Cancer
North Brunswick, NJ, July 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- PDS
Biotechnology Corporation ("PDS"), a private clinical stage
immuno-oncology company developing novel immunotherapies, has
entered a clinical trial collaboration agreement with a subsidiary
of Merck Inc. (known as MSD outside the United States and Canada)
to evaluate the combination of PDS's lead Versamune(R)-based
immunotherapy, PDS0101, with Merck Inc.'s anti-PD-1 therapy,
KEYTRUDA(R) (pembrolizumab), in a Phase II clinical trial. The
planned clinical trial will evaluate the safety and efficacy of the
combination in patients with recurrent or metastatic head and neck
cancer and high-risk human papillomavirus-16 (HPV16) infection
after failure with platinum-based chemotherapy.
"We are honored to collaborate with Merck Inc. - one of the
world's leading cancer immuno-oncology companies - on this
innovative, investigational combination cancer treatment for head
and neck cancer patients," said Dr. Frank Bedu-Addo, CEO of PDS.
"This collaboration is supported by our recent Phase IIa human
clinical data demonstrating that PDS0101 uniquely combined
induction of high levels of active tumor-targeting T-cells with an
excellent safety profile. If PDS0101's strong human immunological
responses and superior safety profile are confirmed by
demonstration of clinical benefit for HPV-cancer patients in
multiple upcoming Phase IIb trials, including this important
alliance with Merck Inc. in combination with a checkpoint
inhibitor, PDS will be uniquely positioned to meaningfully impact
clinical outcomes across a wide range of patients with HPV-related
cancers."
Details of the collaboration were not disclosed.
KEYTRUDA(R) is a registered trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme
Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, NJ,
USA.
Versamune(R) is a registered trademark of PDS Biotechnology
Corporation, North Brunswick, NJ, USA.
About the Versamune(R) T-Cell Activating Platform:
Versamune(R) is a synthetic T-cell activating nanoparticle
platform that overcomes a key obstacle facing cancer immunotherapy
by facilitating efficient presentation of cancer proteins
recognized by the immune system to powerful tumor-attacking immune
cells called killer T-cells. This process trains the body's T-cells
to recognize and attack the cancer. The Versamune(R) platform has
also demonstrated the ability to induce the immunological stimuli
locally within the lymph nodes to recruit T-cells, and to enhance
both the proliferation and potency of the trained T-cells. Thirdly,
Versamune(R) has also been demonstrated to significantly reduce the
population of immune suppressive cells within the tumors in
preclinical models, thus facilitating effective killing of the
cancer cells. Efficient activation of each of the above mechanisms
by Versamune(R) in order to effectively treat cancer is being
actively studied in human clinical trials.
About PDS0101
PDS0101 is a combination of Versamune(R) with harmless
multi-epitope peptides derived from cancer-causing proteins of the
HPV virus which are recognized by the immune system. PDS plans to
evaluate PDS0101 in multiple HPV-advanced cancer and HPV pre-cancer
Phase IIb clinical trials.
About PDS Biotechnology Corporation:
PDS is a clinical stage immuno-oncology company committed to the
development of simpler, safer and more effective immunotherapies.
An example of the company's approach is the versatile Versamune(R)
T-cell activating platform, which has also demonstrated the
potential for a uniquely safe profile based on early clinical
results. PDS Biotechnology's active Versamune(R)-based oncology
pipeline includes products for prostate, ovarian, lung, breast and
colorectal cancers, in addition to the its lead PDS0101 program for
several HPV-related cancers including cervical, head and neck and
anal cancers.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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