-- Novel approach to creating Wnt-mimetics establishes proof-of-concept for targeted regenerative antibodies --
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., March 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Surrozen Inc., a biotechnology company pioneering a new class of targeted regenerative antibodies, today announced a peer-reviewed publication describing its novel platform for generation of potent and selective Wnt-mimetics. The article, “Development of Potent, Selective Surrogate WNT Molecules and Their Application in Defining Frizzled Requirements” was published online today in Cell Chemical Biology.
The article describes Surrozen’s Wnt-mimetic platform comprising potent, multivalent antibodies directly activating the Wnt signaling pathway. These multivalent antibodies achieve Fzd receptor specificity and have potential applications as targeted therapeutics for tissue regeneration. The Company’s research identified key requirements for maximal signaling and represents a new approach to utilizing the Wnt signaling pathway to potentially repair a broad range of tissues.
“I am proud of all the scientists who contributed to the body of work that supported the publication of these important findings,” said Craig Parker, chief executive officer of Surrozen. “We believe that safely and effectively activating the Wnt pathway will open new avenues for therapeutic discovery in numerous disease areas.”
Important results in the publication include the observation that multivalent binding is required to achieve maximal activation of Wnt signaling and that active receptor complexes can contain different ratios of receptors. Furthermore, the data indicate that recruitment of two different Fzd receptors together with lipoprotein receptor-related protein (LRP) induces efficient signaling. The article will appear in print in a future issue of Cell Chemical Biology.
“These results suggest that a tissue-specific Wnt-mimetic can stimulate regeneration in a cell-specific manner and provide a blueprint for constructing a tissue-specific molecule,” said Dr. Yang Li, lead author of the publication and vice president of Biology at Surrozen. “The novel Wnt pathway engineering method described in the article can be tailored to a broad range of tissue types, highlighting the ability of our core technology to impact many different disease areas.”
About Wnt Signaling
Wnt signaling plays key roles in the control of development, homeostasis, and regeneration of many essential organs and tissues, including bone, liver, skin, intestine, lung, kidney, central nervous system, cochlea and others. Modulation of Wnt signaling pathways has potential for treatment of degenerative diseases and tissue injuries. There are 19 Wnt ligands (Wnts) in mammals, and they signal through Frizzled receptors (Fzds) 1-10 and LRP5 or 6, two families of receptors. Endogenous Wnts bind to multiple Fzds and are heavily modified post-translationally, making them difficult to manufacture consistently.
About Surrozen’s Proprietary Antibody Platforms and Harnessing Wnt Signaling
Since its founding in 2016, Surrozen has developed two proprietary platforms to selectively modulate the Wnt pathway for the potential treatment of injury and disease. Surrozen Wnt-mimetics, also referred to as SWAPs (Surrozen Wnt Signal Activating Proteins), are bi-specific full-length human (IgG) antibodies that directly activate the canonical Wnt signaling pathway in target tissue. Surrozen R-spondin-mimetics, also referred to as SWEETS (Surrozen Wnt Signal Enhancer Engineered for Tissue Specificity), are uniquely engineered antibodies that stabilize Wnt receptors.
About Surrozen
Surrozen is a biotechnology company pioneering a new class of targeted regenerative antibodies to repair a broad range of tissues and organs damaged by serious disease. Surrozen is designing tissue-specific antibodies that engage the body’s own biological repair mechanisms resulting in a broad pipeline of disease-specific therapies to help patients across multiple disease areas. For more information, please visit surrozen.com.