Company is leveraging its integrin platform technology to improve effectiveness of immunotherapies, including Covid-19 vaccines
HOUSTON, June 04, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- 7 Hills Pharma, a clinical-stage immunotherapy company focused on the development of drugs for treatment and prevention of cancer and infectious diseases, will be featured in the BIO Digital 2020 online international convention with a video presentation by President and CEO Upendra Marathi, Ph.D, MBA.
Dr. Marathi will discuss the company’s first-in-class, oral integrin activators that augment antigen-specific immune responses to improve the effectiveness of vaccines and immuno-oncology drugs. His participation is part of a partnership between the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) and the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) aimed at highlighting select emerging biomedical companies within an Innovation Zone of the BIO Digital online platform.
The 7 Hills Pharma video can be viewed in the Available on Demand company presentation site of the digital convention.
“We want to thank BIO and the NIH’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant program for making it possible for 7 Hills Pharma to participate in this convention,” Dr. Marathi said. “Everyone is facing unique challenges during the Covid-19 pandemic, and we appreciate BIO’s efforts in transferring its annual convention online to give us an opportunity to reach an international audience during this difficult time.”
7 Hills Pharma has developed a novel, systemic means of safely improving the immune system response of any immunotherapy. The company’s patent-protected small molecule integrin activators significantly enhance cell adhesion, which is essential for producing an immune response.
7 Hills Pharma’s Covid-19 vaccine adjuvant program specifically addresses at-risk older people. “We expect our cell adhesion agents will greatly enhance the efficacy of emerging vaccines against this coronavirus,” Dr. Marathi added. “Although this approach is potentially applicable for all ages, older subjects have lower immune responses to vaccines, in general, and may respond particularly well.”
In addition to the Covid-19 program, 7 Hills Pharma is targeting its immune stimulating adjuvants for use with influenza vaccines and PD-1 checkpoint inhibitors in treatment of solid tumor cancers.
“Our small molecule compounds directly activate integrins to promote cell adhesion,” explained Dr. Marathi. “Immunotherapies indirectly activate integrins and in many instances do not independently promote adequate cell adhesion for a strong immune response. The resulting defective cell adhesion is why flu vaccines don’t protect more than 50 percent of people over 65 and why immuno-oncology drugs fail in 70% of cancer patients. 7 Hills compounds may improve these ineffective vaccines and therapies”
About 7 Hills Pharma
7 Hills Pharma is focused on the development of novel and cost-efficient immunomodulatory agents that leverage well-known integrin biology to drive and enhance essential steps in the immune cycle. The company’s lead programs are designed to improve the effectiveness of immuno-oncology therapies including checkpoint inhibitors, vaccines, and cord blood transplantation in the treatment of cancers and infectious diseases. For more information, visit http://www.7hillspharma.com
Media Contacts:
Robert Williams
Robert@7hillspharma.com