Antisense Pharma Changes Name to Isarna Therapeutics

Isarna Logo

Development Efforts Focused on Next Generation Oligonucleotides to Treat Cancer Capitalizing on Long-standing Experience in TGF-β

Munich, Germany, and Zurich, Switzerland, September 30, 2013 / B3C newswire / - Antisense Pharma GmbH has changed its name to Isarna Therapeutics GmbH and centralized all of its activities to a single location in Munich, the company announced today at the Sachs 13th Annual Biotech in Europe Investor Forum held in Zurich, Switzerland. The company’s new website is www.isarna-therapeutics.com.

“The name change to Isarna Therapeutics illustrates our new company dynamics combined with our continued leadership in the TGF-β pathway,” explained Dr. Philippe Calais, CEO of Isarna Therapeutics.  “We are currently extending our pipeline to include next-generation oligonucleotides to treat cancer and expect several key near-term events that highlight this momentum.”

Isarna Therapeutics is committed to rapidly advancing a pipeline of next generation oligonucleotides (NGOs) targeting the various isoforms of TGF-β, a family of cytokine proteins that plays a significant role in cancer’s ability to escape immune system detection and promote tumor growth. Based on its unique deciphering of the TGF-β biology, the company has to date amassed an unmatched expertise in discovery and clinical development of oligonucleotides antagonists of the various TGF-β isoforms.  Much of this knowledge is the result of developing its first-generation compound trabedersen for several cancer indications and up to a Phase III clinical trial. The further development of that compound is focused on a Responder Patient Profiling Program (RPPP), aimed at assessing the genetic profile and responder biomarkers of patients suffering from cancer to establish correlations between tumor biology and response to anti-TGF-β oligonucleotides. This unique proprietary program will allow Isarna Therapeutics to select the right patients who will be best suited for treatment not only by trabedersen but also by any of the next generation of TGF-β inhibitors entering clinical development.

“Our goal as a company is to solidify our strengths in the TGF-β isoform family and remain a lean and focused organization capable of rapidly advancing compounds into mid-stage clinical development,” added Dr. Calais.

 
About Isarna Therapeutics
Isarna Therapeutics has an unmatched commitment to developing TGF-β inhibitors that stimulate the human immune system to effectively fight cancer.  We are advancing a unique pipeline of novel oligonucleotides and combination modalities to transcend clinical response and improve patient outcomes.


Contact information

Dr. Andrea Kottke,
Head Medical Affairs and Communication, Isarna Therapeutics
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
or
Gretchen Schweitzer,
MacDougall Biomedical Communications
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 
+49 172 861 8540