REG - N4 Pharma PLC - Operational Update

N4 PharmaAnnouncement

14/09/2022 07:01

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RNS Number : 3436Z  N4 Pharma PLC  14 September 2022

 

14 September 2022

N4 Pharma Plc

("N4 Pharma" or the "Company")

Operational Update

N4 Pharma Plc (AIM: N4P), the specialist pharmaceutical company developing
Nuvec(®), a novel delivery system for cancer treatments and vaccines, is
pleased to provide an operational update on its development plans for
commercialising Nuvec(®).

 

On 13 June 2022 and 15 July 2022, the Company provided updates that in vivo
investigations of Nuvec(®) loaded with various doses of TNF alpha had showed
clear tumour suppression and that the Company had successfully loaded
Nuvec(®) with siRNA and shown a good in-vitro knockdown response.

The Company has now completed initial testing on loading Nuvec(®) with two
generic siRNA probes, GFP (Green Fluorescent protein) and EHMT-2 (Euchromatic
Histone Lysine Methyltransferase 2) at the same time. The Company's next step
will be to test in vitro whether Nuvec(®) loaded with both forms of siRNA is
able to silence both targets, which has already been demonstrated with
singular loading.

 

Following this work, the Company has undertaken a review of where it believes
it will likely get greatest traction to allow a commercial license deal to be
agreed, in addition to the ongoing MTA work it already has in place.

 

After the development of successful mRNA vaccines, major companies in this
space appear to be focusing future development on gene therapy treatments in
particular using siRNA to silence identified pathways involved in cancer.
Given the pre-clinical status of Nuvec(®), the Company believes that focusing
its work on loading more than one siRNA sequence onto the same nanoparticle
will result in silencing of complimentary pathways leading to an increased
therapeutic response and establish a significant differential in this
marketplace.

 

Having established the capability of Nuvec(®) to carry two siRNA species and
provide a functional response, the Company is now undertaking a series of
experiments over the coming months using two siRNA sequences directed against
known, and clinically validated, oncology targets. Specifically, the targets
are the EGFR signalling pathway, which regulates cell cycle progression and
BCl-2, which regulates apoptosis, a form of programmed cell death. Silencing
of the EGFR pathway is expected to inhibit cell division while silencing BCl-2
will promote apoptosis and the potential for additive or synergistic effects
will be explored. Initial studies will be conducted in vitro using a lung
cancer cell line. This will be followed by in vivo studies in mice.

 

Further updates will be provided as this programme of work progresses.

 

 

Nigel Theobald, Chief Executive Officer of the Company, commented:

 

"The world of vaccines and cancer therapy development is a fast changing one
and the wide applicability of Nuvec(®) as a delivery system leaves us well
placed to adapt to this ever-changing climate.

 

"We have now identified a very strong commercial point of difference for
Nuvec(®) in that it can be successfully loaded with at least two siRNA genes
and maintain a monodisperse formulation. The area of combination cancer
treatments is attracting a lot of interest and investment and siRNA is an
exciting and growing area for clinical development. Our research has shown
over 300 companies active in the RNA gene therapy space with 106 clinical
trials using siRNA already underway and likely many more to follow.

"Vaccine developers are looking to use their existing tried and tested systems
in late-stage clinical work but companies working with siRNA are much more
open to using novel delivery systems with a strong point of difference and are
mainly focused in early-stage clinical work making this an ideal space for
Nuvec(®). Our vaccine work is reliant on finding a partner to take Nuvec(®)
into clinical development, however using the siRNA genes EGFR and BCl-2 allows
us to demonstrate the efficacy of using Nuvec(®) ourselves in a proven
clinical model, without major investment.

"We remain well funded to complete the next phases of our siRNA work and
present this data to Companies working in this space with a view to licensing
Nuvec(®)."

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to
constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations
(EU) No. 596/2014 which has been incorporated into UK law by the European
Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.

Enquiries:

 

 N4 Pharma Plc                                       Via IFC Advisory

 Nigel Theobald, CEO

 Luke Cairns, Executive Director

 SP Angel Corporate Finance LLP                      Tel: +44 (0)20 3470 0470

 Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker

 Matthew Johnson/Caroline Rowe (Corporate Finance)

 Vadim Alexandre/Rob Rees (Corporate Broking)

 IFC Advisory Limited                                Tel: +44 (0)20 3934 6630

 Financial PR

 Graham Herring

 Zach Cohen

 

 

About N4 Pharma

N4 Pharma is a specialist pharmaceutical company developing a novel delivery
system for cancer and vaccine treatments using its unique silica nanoparticle
delivery system called Nuvec®.

N4 Pharma's business model is to partner with companies developing novel
antigens for cancer and vaccine treatments to use Nuvec® as the delivery
vehicle to get their antigen into cells to express the protein needed for the
required immunity. As these products progress through pre clinical and
clinical programs, N4 Pharma will seek to receive up front payments, milestone
payments and ultimately royalty payments once products reach the market.

 

 

 

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