LYON, FRANCE (May 27, 2020) – Signia Therapeutics announced today that it has received a grant of € 2.38 millionfrom the European Commission as part of the “EIC Accelerator Phase 2” (SME Instrument) call for projects for the development of its SIGNATURA®platform dedicated to the repositioning of drugs.
The SIGNATURA® platform has already enabled the preclinical identification and validation of several drugs for their repositioning in the treatment of respiratory infections, in particular in severe forms of influenza. The European funding “H2020 EIC Accelerator” will significantly accelerate the development of the SIGNATURA® platform for the validation of new generation antiviral molecules.
In the context of the current pandemic, Signia Therapeutics has demonstrated its ability to react rapidlyby validating a drug candidate against SARS-CoV-2 in its preclinical predictive models three weeks after being granted access to samples from COVID-19 patients. The filing of two patent applications and the submission of four scientific articles testify to the quality of this research and the company’s ability to mobilize quickly.
In recognition of the scientific excellence of the SIGNATURA®platform, this European funding will accelerate the growth of the Signia Therapeutics portfolio to position the company as a leaderin the field of drug repositioning for new therapeutic indications against viral respiratory infections.
About Signia Therapeutics
Signia Therapeutics, a spin-off of the VirPath laboratory (International Centre for Research in Infectiology (INSERM – CNRS – UCBL1 – ENS Lyon), is an innovative biotechnology company labelled “French Tech Seed”, specializing in the repositioning of drugs in new therapeutic indications against respiratory infections.
Signia Therapeutics’ portfolio includes nine molecules repositioned as new generation antivirals and protected by international patent applications. Signia Therapeutics’ strategy is based on an innovative in silicoapproach to Drug Discovery and the use of a collection of ex vivoand in vivopredictive preclinical models for the evaluation of candidate molecules. As part of its privileged partnership with the VirPath laboratory, Signia Therapeutics benefits from high-level expertise in virology and privileged access to a collection of viral strains, as well as cutting-edge technological equipment and BSL-2 and BSL-3 laboratory.
The multicentric, randomized, double-blind, Phase IIb FLUNEXT (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT03212716) clinical trial started in January 2018 with the aim of evaluating diltiazem in combination with oseltamivir (Tamiflu®) in the treatment of severe influenza. Diltiazem is a calcium channel blocker used in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Signia Therapeutics’ technology has enabled the discovery of important antiviral properties linked to the stimulation of the host’s innate immune response, allowing the repositioning of the molecule.
The results of FLUNEXT are expected in 2021.
For further information: www.signiatherapeutics.com
Frédéric Galli, CBO Philippe Person, CEO
+33 6 07243252 +33 6 47343488
frederic.galli@signiatherapeutics.com philippe.personne@signiatherapeutics.com