selectION, a biotechnology company developing novel peptide therapies for autoimmune diseases, announced a $5 million convertible promissory note financing. The funds will be used to advance selectION’s lead candidate, si-544, into clinical development in early 2021.
si-544 is the best-in-class Kv1.3-selective peptide blocker for the treatment of effector memory T cell-driven diseases, like autoimmune diseases (Vasculitis, Rheumatoid Arthritis or Multiple Sclerosis) or certain rare cancers (like cutaneous T cell lymphoma). si-544 selectively binds to Kv1.3 with a picomolar IC50 and does not bind to other key functional ion channels, such as hERG or Kv1.5, avoiding off-target effects.
Preclinical safety and toxicology studies in rats and non-human primates showed a favorable safety profile. Importantly, the general immune response in rats was not impaired under si-544 therapy.
Read more about selectION here.
Image by Arek Socha from Pixabay
