IM Therapeutics to Present Advances of its Technology Platform in Developing Therapies for Autoimmune Disease
WOBURN, MA – February 25, 2020 – ImmunoMolecular Therapeutics, Inc. (“IM Therapeutics”), a drug development company focused on personalized therapies for autoimmune disease, will present its small molecule drug development program at the Antigen-Specific Immune Tolerance (ASIT) Drug Development conference in Boston, MA.
Dr. Aaron Michels, MD, Chief Scientific Officer, IM Therapeutics, invited as an Expert Speaker will present a talk titled “From Mechanism to Clinical Trial – Blocking Disease-Specific HLA in Type 1 Diabetes” at ASIT on February 26th.
While many human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class II gene variants are known to be involved in conferring risk for autoimmune diseases, few have been tapped for developing immune tolerance or blocking autoimmune responses and much less for oral small molecule drug design. Starting with HLA DQ8 and its presentation of insulin and gliadin as antigens in type 1 diabetes and celiac disease respectively, Dr. Michels and IM Therapeutics co-founder Dr. Peter Gottlieb designed specific small molecules as drug candidates for blocking DQ8 action. The lead drug, IMT-002, arising from this effort is being readied for Phase 1 trials in summer of 2020.
In addition to the ongoing clinical development of the DQ8-blocking drug in type 1 diabetes, Dr. Michels discusses opportunities to extend this approach to other HLAs. Early therapeutic design against HLA DQ2 is underway for celiac disease and other DQ2-related indications. The core technology platform can be directed at HLA variants known to be high-risk factors in a range of autoimmune diseases.
About IM Therapeutics
IM Therapeutics was founded on seminal research showing that blocking the function of certain HLA molecules can abrogate an autoimmune response. The Company is developing personalized medicines for autoimmune diseases by building oral drug therapies against HLA variants that confer high risk of disease. The technology platform screens millions of compounds for optimal docking within HLA proteins together with rational drug design and bioassays to develop targeted therapeutic candidates. Its lead drug, IMT-002, is directed at HLA DQ8 activity for treatment of type 1 diabetes. IMTherapeutics.com
About ASIT 2020
The Antigen-Specific Immune Tolerance Summit, February 25-27, 2020 in Boston, MA, will bring together 80+ industry experts to address the key challenges currently impeding drug development for tolerance inducing therapeutics. Incorporating insights from industry-leading speakers, this conference will delve into the key target discovery, tolerance delivery, and regulatory hurdles that must be addressed for ASIT therapeutics to fulfill their full commercial potential. ASIT 2020
Media Contact
IM Therapeutics
Greg Kading
gkading@imtherapeutics.com