Spring Bank announces research agreement with The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to evaluate HBV antisense oligonucleotide compounds

Spring Bank Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics for the treatment of viral infections, inflammatory diseases and certain cancers, has announced that it has entered into a research agreement with The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, to evaluate Spring Bank’s hepatitis B virus (HBV) antisense oligonucleotide compounds.

Spring Bank has entered into a non‐clinical evaluation agreement to access NIAID’s preclinical services program to further evaluate Spring Bank’s HBV antisense oligonucleotide compounds. Under the agreement, NIAID‐funded contractors will evaluate Spring Bank’s lead compounds in the HBV transgenic mouse model, a well-established preclinical model to assess compound efficacy. NIAID has previously supported the evaluation of several of Spring Bank’s HBV antisense oligonucleotide compounds in antiviral in vitro assays. Spring Bank retains exclusive rights to these compounds.

There remains a significant unmet need for easily administered antiviral and immunomodulatory therapies with favorable safety profiles that can be used in combination as a functional cure for chronic HBV. Spring Bank is designing its HBV antisense oligonucleotide compounds to inhibit all HBV proteins, including the HBx protein. The company has recently nominated novel, lead antisense compounds for advancement into non-clinical studies in HBV. The company will seek to accelerate this new internal program with a goal to potentially position a lead compound for use in a clinical trial in late 2020 involving a triple combination for HBV consisting of the lead antisense compound co-administered with inarigivir, the company’s lead Phase 2 product candidate, and a nucleo(s)tide analog, for potentially achieving functional cure.

“We are grateful to NIAID for their support of our HBV oligonucleotide antisense program,” said Kris Iyer, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer and Co-Founder of Spring Bank. “The research supported by this prestigious institution will enhance our knowledge of the non-clinical efficacy profile for our HBV antisense oligonucleotide R&D program.”

For more science news, straight to your inbox, join SelectScience today >>