Stallergenes to develop oral allergy treatment with ActoGeniX

Stallergenes has exercised its option to exclusively develop a new class of oral allergy treatments with ActoGeniX, according to a press release.

The collaboration, based on a December 2013 contract between the two companies, focuses on developing “a novel treatment approach based on allergen-specific tolerance through innovative delivery of allergens expressed and secreted by the allergen-secreting [Lactococcus lactis] bacteria,” the release said. ActoGeniX’s technology application to allergens was successfully validated in a proof of principal (PoP) study in preclinical models, according to the release.

“The PoP study provides the scientific basis for the applicability of our technology platform in allergen immunotherapy,” Bernard Coulie, MD, PhD, chief executive officer of ActoGeniX, said in the release. “We are extremely pleased to continue our collaboration with Stallergenes while we focus on progressing our existing pipeline and validating our technology platform in new therapeutic areas.”

“With this first study, we are confident that the first-in-class technology platform provided by ActoGeniX is an innovative breakthrough that can offer targeted delivery of allergen-based treatments and further increase the efficacy of allergen immunotherapy,” Philippe Moingeon, PhD, senior vice president, research and pharmaceutical development of Stallergenes, said in the release.

Under terms of the 2013 agreement, ActoGeniX has responsibility to create clinical product candidates based on application of its ActoBiotics genetically engineered lactic acid bacteria to a Stallergenes-defined set of allergens. Stallergenes has full development and exclusive commercialization rights to the product candidates, the release said.