Nanoform and Herantis sign biologics proof of concept agreement

Published: 10-Feb-2021

The agreed and non-exclusive collaboration is intended to assess the utility of Nanoform’s latest nanoparticle platform technology for biologic drugs

Nanoform Finland, an innovative nanoparticle medicine enabling company, and Herantis Pharma, an innovative clinical stage biotech company, today announced that they have signed a Biologics Proof of Concept Agreement for formulation Proof of Concept projects (PoCs) aiming to enhance nasal drug delivery to the brain of Herantis’ CDNF therapies for Parkinson’s disease using Nanoform’s proprietary biological nanoparticle technology. Nanoform has by this Agreement achieved its near-term business target of “First Biologics PoC project signed in 2021”.

The agreed and non-exclusive collaboration is intended to assess the utility of Nanoform’s latest nanoparticle platform technology for biologic drugs. The technology was launched in late 2020, post filing of a provisional patent application with the US Patent Office, to enable production of biological nanoparticles as small as 50 nm.

Brain delivery for biologicals and small molecules is a hugely challenging route of administration and we firmly believe nanoparticles have a key role to play in enhancing and hopefully enabling this

Nanoform will carry out, for compensation on standard commercial terms, formulation PoC projects on Herantis’ CDNF molecules leveraging Nanoform’s novel platform and its in-house formulation expertise. The goal of the planned collaboration is to develop a formulation that increases the probability of success for enhanced penetration into the brain via the nasal drug delivery route for CDNF.

“We are delighted to finalise the Agreement with Herantis and initiate our partnership together. Brain delivery for biologicals and small molecules is a hugely challenging route of administration and we firmly believe nanoparticles have a key role to play in enhancing and hopefully enabling this. Since the launch of our Biologics nanoparticle technology platform, we have experienced a high level of interest from the industry in exploring how our nanoparticles can potentially enable drug delivery opportunities and solve challenges in this space and we look forward to onboarding further partners both on the Biologics and Small molecules side.” said Christian Jones, Chief Commercial Officer of Nanoform.

“Intranasal delivery of CDNF is a key focus for Herantis. One of our important initiatives in this regard is the work with Nanoform to enhance and enable superior formulations of the pioneering new drugs we have developed and is a key and exciting opportunity for Herantis. Initiating this PoC formulation work is a solid start to 2021 and we look forward to evaluating Nanoform’s technologies to explore the potential enhancements of the drug delivery applications in this complex and challenging field. It is our hope that this collaboration will open up new possibilities for improving the lives of patients with Parkinson’s and other related diseases. We value the opportunity to enter into collaboration with Nanoform and look forward to what the future brings.” said Dr. Craig Cook, Chief Executive Officer of Herantis Pharma.

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