The research collaboration looks to advance Enterome’s EB1010, the firm’s lead EndoMimics pipeline candidate designed to provide improved therapeutic outcomes for patients with the conditions.
The two companies are also committed to identifying and creating a pipeline of novel AllerMimics (allergen immunotherapies for food allergies) using Enterome’s Mimicry platform.
The initial focus is on peanut allergens as the basis for a novel class of immunotherapies that aims to suppress allergic reactions.
“AllerMimics are a truly novel class of specific antigens produced by the microbiome that are similar to food allergens, and work by helping the body’s immune system tolerize to these specific allergens,” explains Dr Christophe Bonny, Chief Scientific Officer of Enterome.
“We are excited about the opportunity to partner with Enterome on their unique microbiome drug discovery platform striving to develop first-in-class, high-quality treatment solutions that will help patients to live a healthier life,” adds Hans-Juergen Woerle, Chief Scientific and Medical Officer of Nestlé Health Science.
€40m upfront in cash
Under the financial terms of the agreement, the Enterome will receive €40m upfront in cash and in equity from Nestlé Health Science.
The Paris-based firm is also eligible to receive clinical and sales milestone payments for each licensed therapeutic candidate plus royalties on net sales.
Further terms will see Enterome become responsible for leading drug discovery activities and bear related costs up to the investigational new drug (IND) application.
Approximately 220 million people around the world live with food allergies, while seven million live with inflammatory bowel disease, according to Nestlé Health Science.
Enterome’s lead candidate, EB1010 is a potent local inducer of IL-10 targeting food allergies and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and is due to enter clinical trials in 2023.
The candidate was discovered using Enterome’s novel bacterial Mimicry drug discovery platform, which will also be used to identify and develop new EndoMimics as potential novel therapies for inflammation associated with food allergies.
“We believe that EB1010, administered orally as a pill, has the potential to prevent or diminish the intensity of allergic reactions in the gut,” explains Dr Christophe Bonny, Chief Scientific Officer of Enterome.
“EB1010, which will also be evaluated in inflammatory bowel disease, will be applicable to many different types of food allergies, potentially in combination with selected AllerMimics.”
“We will generate new AllerMimics candidates using our Mimicry drug discovery platform, which has already allowed us to discover multiple first-in-class small protein and peptide drug candidates in a broad range of therapeutic areas.”
Mimicry platform
Enterome’s Mimicry drug discovery platform essentially decoded the interaction between the gut microbiome and the immune system.
The Mimicry platform uses biocomputational tools and bioassays to identify novel therapeutics for a broad range of indications from a proprietary database of 20+ million full-length gut microbiome peptides and proteins.
“The signing of this collaboration further highlights both the potential and growing interest in our Mimicry platform as a source of novel immunotherapies,” adds Pierre Belichard, CEO of Enterome.
“This milestone is all the more exciting following recent clinical and immunological validation of the mode of action of EO2401, our first-in-class off-the-shelf OncoMimics immunotherapy for Glioblastoma and Adrenal carcinoma.”
Commenting on the deal, Isabelle de Cremoux, CEO and Managing Partner, Seventure Partners says: “Our Health for Life Capital Fund has been supporting Enterome since the company’s creation.
“As a pioneer in microbiome research, Enterome has once again demonstrated its attractiveness and its ability to enter into co-development agreements with an international dimension.”