Date: Apr 03, 2013 Author: press release Source: bizjournals (
click here to go to the source)
Tetragenetics Inc. in Cambridge, Mass., an early-stage biotech that has developed a new way to produce biologic drugs, has announced an $826,000 grant and new partnerships with two major drug companies.
Doug Kahn, chairman of the company, told Mass High Tech that the company's technology is based on a process of producing proteins using Tetrahymena, an animal-like cell that can be grown in pure culture. There are now about a half-dozen ways to create such large-molecule drug candidates now, one of the most common of which relies on using Chinese hamster ovary, or CHO, cells. Tetragenetics uses its technology for three goals: to create vaccines, for human growth factors, and for ion channels - membrane proteins used for discovering antibodies for pain relief.
Founded in 2004 in Ithaca, N.Y., the company expanded to the Alewife area of Cambridge two years ago to be closer to talented potential employees, and today maintains both locations for its 10 employees. It has raised $4.5 million to date from several angel investors, including many from the Boston Harbor Angels and Launchpad Venture Group LLC, he said. It has also received about $4 million in non-dilutive grants.
The Phase 2 grant announced this week is through the Grand Challenges Explorations, an initiative created by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation address persistent health and development challenges. The grant builds on an Phase 1 grant in 2009 to develop a better malaria vaccine. Kahn said while there is a vaccine available as of two years ago, it's only effective in 60 percent of the population, and his company is hoping to develop one that's not only more effective, but also can be taken orally so it can be used in parts of the world with no electricity.
The two partnerships announced today are a license agreement with Amgen Inc. for a defined surface antigen which is not being disclosed, and a collaboration agreement with Pfizer, including an option for an exclusive license. Kahn said he can't comment on specifics of either agreement.
Kahn said that while the company has been relatively quiet so far and is still more than a year away from testing in humans, it could soon be looking to expand, depending on how its various new partnerships go.
"We now have substantial scientific data, which makes those partnerships possible," he said.
