Proclara Biosciences, a biotechnology company developing novel therapies for diseases caused by protein misfolding, has been awarded a grant of $250,000 to support the development of NPT189 for the treatment of Alzheimer’s and other age-related neurological diseases.
NPT189 is a second-generation fusion protein manufactured using advanced cell culture methods.
The work is projected to start in 2017 at Patheon’s state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Brisbane. The company said the material produced from the scale-up batch will be used in preclinical studies required for regulatory approvals and to de-risk the transition to large scale cGMP manufacture.
Proclara Biosciences has also been awarded an establishment grant of $25,000 from Biopharmaceuticals Australia (BPA).
"Proclara’s drug candidates simultaneously target the multiple misfolded proteins implicated in neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other age-related degenerative diseases of the central nervous system. Proclara’s drug candidates may also be used to treat other protein-misfolding diseases, including systemic amyloidosis," said the company in a statement.
BPA’s Biopharmaceutical Development Fund of more than $2 million has pioneered support in Australia for new medicines in pre-clinical and early clinical development. BPA has already committed $1.8M to support biotech companies in developing biodrugs in association with Patheon. BPA estimates that its Patheon partnership returned a total economic benefit to Australia of over $100 million in under three years, with over $1 billion return forecast over 10 years.