BioAxone BioSciences Awarded $1.1 Million Phase 2 SBIR Funding for Continued Development of sd-rxRNA Drug Candidate for the Treatment of Spinal Cord Injury
BioAxone BioSciences Awarded $1.1 Million Phase 2 SBIR Funding for Continued Development of sd-rxRNA Drug Candidate for the Treatment of Spinal Cord Injury Award based on accomplishment of 1-year milestones; Collaborator RXi Pharmaceuticals to receive a portion of the allotted funding |
[28-June-2018] |
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. and MARLBOROUGH, Mass., June 28, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- BioAxone BioSciences, Inc. announced today that, as part of a collaborative effort with RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation (NASDAQ: RXII), it is the recipient of a grant award from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), part of the agency's SBIR Phase II funding program. This two-year grant provides funding for further development of BioAxone's preclinical candidate BA-434, a novel sd-rxRNA® compound that targets PTEN for the treatment of spinal cord injury (SCI). Logo: http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/594748/RXi_Pharmaceuticals_Corporation_Logo.jpg Unlike other SCI drugs in clinical development that target growth inhibition in the central nervous system (CNS), BA-434 targets intrinsic barriers to axon regeneration. After neurotrauma, neurons in the central nervous system do not spontaneously regenerate their injured axons. Intrinsic barriers to regeneration refer to the diminished ability of adult CNS neurons to regenerate. PTEN is known to be an intrinsic barrier to regeneration and BA-434 uses RXi's self-delivering RNA interference therapeutic platform to block PTEN expression. "This award reinforces the need for new therapeutics to address a critical unmet need for patients with spinal cord injuries," said Lisa McKerracher, PhD, CEO, BioAxone BioSciences. "We appreciate NINDS' recognition of the importance of our technology and the progress we have made to date." In September 2017, BioAxone was awarded a total of $1,794,895 to fund the collaborative project over 24 months. To date the project has received $735,822 and today the remaining $1,059,073 was awarded based on accomplishing drug development milestones. For their contribution, RXi received $128,838 in the first year and is to receive an additional $118,800. Under this grant, entitled "Development of self-delivering RNAi targeted to PTEN for treatment of spinal cord injury," BA-434 will be further developed to silence PTEN, a protein known to be an intrinsic barrier to regeneration, thereby supporting regeneration in the adult central nervous system. "We are very pleased with the advancements that BioAxone has achieved using our proprietary therapeutic platform in the development of potential therapeutics for spinal cord injuries," said Dr. Karen Bulock, Vice President of Research at RXi Pharmaceuticals. She further added, "Our team looks forward to continued collaboration with BioAxone in this important research supporting the development of BioAxone's preclinical candidate BA-434, a novel sd-rxRNA compound for the treatment of spinal cord injury." The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program was created by the U.S. Congress to strengthen the role of small, innovative companies in federally supported research and development. It is one of the largest sources of early-stage technology financing in the U.S. The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) is the nation's leading funder of research on the brain and nervous system and a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Research reported in this publication was supported by the NINDS of the NIH under Award Number R44NS084489. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. About BioAxone BioSciences About RXi Pharmaceuticals Forward-Looking Statements Contact BioAxone Biosciences, Inc. RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation SOURCE RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation; BioAxone BioSciences | ||
Company Codes: NASDAQ-SMALL:RXII |
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