NEW YORK, July 10, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Filament BioSolutions, a development-stage company focused on delivering innovative therapeutics for nutritional deficiencies, announced today continued progress in the development of its lead product FB-2710, an oral formulation of alanyl-glutamine, for the prevention of radiation-induced oral mucositis in head and neck cancer patients. The company is developing FB-2710 in collaboration with Ajinomoto Co., Inc., a global manufacturer of high-quality amino acids for the pharmaceutical and food industry.
Oral mucositis is a debilitating side-effect of high-intensity radiation and chemotherapy. Over 500,000 patients annually in the United States experience oral mucositis, including more than 90% of head and neck cancer patients treated with radiation. Oral mucositis results from a breakdown of the epithelial lining in the mouth and can lead to treatment dose reductions, local and systemic infections, compromised nutrition, and hospitalization. As such, oral mucositis is often a dose-limiting toxicity of cancer therapy. There is currently no FDA-approved therapeutic for radiation-induced oral mucositis in head and neck cancer patients.
FB-2710 is designed for optimal bioavailability and cellular uptake of glutamine, a critical nutrient and energy source for rapidly-dividing cells that regenerate the lining of the gastrointestinal tract. During radiation and chemotherapy, glutamine may become conditionally deficient, leaving patients at risk of developing side effects such as oral mucositis. In addition to radiation-induced oral mucositis, Filament plans to conduct preclinical and clinical work with FB-2710 as a co-therapy to commonly prescribed chemotherapies, as well as certain targeted agents.
“We believe there is a significant opportunity to develop oncology co-therapies that address nutritional and metabolic deficiencies that often confound the underlying disease. These nutritional deficiencies frequently undermine the body’s ability to effectively target the tumor, or contributes to toxicities that limit the effectiveness or intensity of cancer treatment,” said Dr. Thomas Cirrito, Co-Founder and CEO of Filament BioSolutions. “Radiation-induced oral mucositis is highly debilitating to patients and causes frequent breaks in radiation therapy. Extensive clinical literature, as well as our proprietary preclinical data, validates our approach with FB-2710.”
Mr. Tatsuya Sato, CEO and President of Ajinomoto Health & Nutrition North America, Inc. remarked, “We are excited to continue to move our collaboration with Filament forward. Filament has an innovative approach to translate our high-quality amino acids into therapies for nutritional and metabolic deficiencies. We look forward to working with Filament to build a portfolio of products that address unmet medical needs for patients.”
About Filament
Filament BioSolutions, Inc is a development-stage company focused on delivering innovative therapeutics for nutritional deficiencies. Filament is focused on generating high-quality evidence and building strong patent portfolios around products with demonstrated clinical efficacy and a compelling commercial outlook. For more information about Filament BioSolutions, Inc., visit www.filamentbiosolutions.com.
About Ajinomoto Health & Nutrition North America, Inc.
Ajinomoto Health & Nutrition is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ajinomoto Co., Inc. (Ajinomoto). Ajinomoto is recognized as a global leader in the research, development, manufacture and sale of amino acid-based products and food ingredients for the pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, sports nutrition, health and beauty industries. The company opened its first North American office in New York in 1917 and has since grown and expanded its presence, establishing offices and production facilities in Illinois, North Carolina, and Iowa. Ajinomoto Health & Nutrition leverages an international manufacturing, supply and distribution chain to bring the highest quality products to customers. For additional information on, the company, visit www.ajinorthamerica.com.
Contact
Jason Rosenberg
Filament BioSolutions, Inc.
+1 (646) 838-4025
jason@filamentbiosolutions.com
www.filamentbiosolutions.com