SAN ANTONIO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Emtora Biosciences, a privately-held, clinical stage life science company announced today that it will receive a SEED Award grant totaling $3 million from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT). The grant will support a Phase 2a trial of the company’s lead drug candidate, eRapaTM, in the treatment of the rare disease Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (FAP).
Patients with FAP suffer from hundreds to thousands of benign polyps in their colon and rectum which develop into colorectal cancer by age 50 without intervention. There is no current treatment for FAP other than bowel resection, which is often done prophylactically in a patient’s adolescent years. Emtora has demonstrated in preclinical studies that eRapa can prevent the formation of polyps in a mouse model for FAP, thus preventing the progression to colon cancer. The company has made significant progress towards validating this target indication including obtaining approval for a 505 (b)(2) abbreviated regulatory pathway, filing an Investigational New Drug (IND) application, gaining safety and dose information in an ongoing Phase Ib clinical study, forging relationships with key opinion leaders and the advocacy group, and receiving Orphan Drug designation.
“We are delighted to receive this CPRIT award to study the impact of eRapa on this devastating disease,” said Dr. Carole Spangler Vaughn, CEO of Emtora Biosciences. “CPRIT’s thorough review process validates our development strategy and path forward. We are especially proud to take part in growing the life science industry in the state of Texas.”
The CPRIT grant will support a Phase 2a study of oral eRapa in 30 FAP patients to verify efficacy in humans. The study will measure eRapa’s ability to impact the number and size of polyps over a 12-month course of treatment. eRapa is targeted specifically to the gastrointestinal tract and is delivered at a consistent and lower dosage than generic rapamycin, not only reducing toxicity, but also capitalizing on the potential of partial inhibition of the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) to act as a cancer immuno-oncology and chemopreventative agent.
About Emtora Biosciences
Emtora Biosciences is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. The company holds the exclusive license to eRapa, an improved, targeted formulation of rapamycin originally developed at UT Health San Antonio that is being investigated to prevent cancer and other age-related medical conditions. Emtora is strategically developing and commercializing eRapa for indications where there are serious unmet medical needs. More information is available at www.emtorabio.com.
About the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas
To date, CPRIT has awarded $2.4 billion in grants to Texas research institutions and organizations through its academic research, prevention, and product development research programs. CPRIT has recruited 181 distinguished researchers, supported the establishment, expansion or relocation of 37 companies to Texas, and generated over $3 billion in additional public and private investment. CPRIT funding has advanced scientific and clinical knowledge and provided 5.7 million life-saving cancer prevention and early detection services reaching Texans from all 254 counties. In May 2019, the Texas Legislature approved a constitutional amendment for the November 5, 2019 general election ballot to authorize an additional $3 billion in bonds for cancer research and prevention. Learn more at cprit.texas.gov. Follow CPRIT on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
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