Ablynx signs Nanobodies NRC deal
with the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) Institute for
Biological Sciences (IBS) that aims to concentrate its discovery
efforts in the area of neurodegenerative diseases.
NRC researchers have identified a new class of Nanobodies that, unlike many other drugs or conventional antibodies, cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB) in a selective and efficient manner.
Nanobodies are a novel class of therapeutic proteins that combine the beneficial features of conventional antibodies with desirable properties of small molecule drugs. Nanobodies have the affinity and selectivity of conventional antibodies yet are only a fraction of their size.
Ablynx will now collaborate on these BBB-crossing Nanobodies with NRC, to develop novel diagnostics and therapeutics for diseases of the Central Nervous System (CNS). In the first instance, Ablynx and the NRC will evaluate the potential of these Nanobodies for applications in Alzheimer's disease. Financial terms of the collboration were not disclosed.
"The fact that NRC has identified Nanobodies that can, uniquely, pass the blood-brain barrier underlines the versatility of Ablynx's platform. We have already demonstrated the therapeutic potential of Nanobodies in several important disease areas like oncology, inflammation and thrombosis," said Dr Mark Vaeck, CEO of Ablynx.
"This agreement with the NRC is the latest example of Ablynx's strategy to partner with leading experts worldwide to develop Nanobodies for important therapeutic applications," he added.
Neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's, have a high unmet medical need, both for better diagnostics and effective therapies. The collaboration hope that the properties of the Nanobodies makes them ideal for use as components in novel diagnostic imaging products and as a means to efficiently transport therapeutic drugs into the brain.
There are an estimated 18 million people in the world with dementia, according to the charity Alzheimer's Disease International, which estimates that by 2025 this figure could increase to 34 million. And finding a treatment that could delay onset by just five years could reduce the number of individuals with Alzheimer's disease by nearly 50 per cent after 50 years.
