Sosei Heptares' COVID-19 Program Identifies Potent Broad Spectrum Anti-Viral Small Molecules for Further Development

TOKYO and CAMBRIDGE, England, Nov. 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Sosei Group Corporation ("the Company") (TSE: 4565) announces a progress update for its R&D program focused on the design and development of novel drugs targeting the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus and to treat COVID-19.

The program was initiated in April 2020. To date, the Company has applied its world-leading structure-based drug design (SBDD) capabilities and cutting-edge technologies to precision-design new inhibitors of the SARS-CoV-2 M^pro protease, which plays a crucial role in viral replication^1-4. 

The Company is also aiming to leverage the highly conserved structure of the SARS-CoV-2 M^pro protease as a basis for the design of novel oral small molecules against predicted future variants of SARS-CoV-2 and other related human viruses.  

Sosei Heptares has successfully designed three distinct series of compounds with attractive anti-viral drug-like properties and advanced the most promising molecules. These compounds have demonstrated high potency in inhibiting the activity of the M^pro protease as well as promising oral bioavailability and blood plasma levels in animal studies. Several compounds are being further optimized for preclinical studies. Details can be found at this link.

The program is being led by Sosei Heptares and progressed in collaboration with multiple companies including Syngene International, Domainex, Fidelta, o2h Discovery, Piramal, WuXi AppTec and the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology.

Miles Congreve, Chief Scientific Officer of Sosei Heptares, commented: "The response we have had from industry and academia to participate in this COVID-19 program has been exceptional and enabled the rapid progress we are reporting today. It has been a great collaborative effort to identify promising small molecules using our SBDD platform, and to progress them through the design phases so quickly to provide initial evidence of their potential as oral treatments for newly diagnosed COVID-19. The approach we are taking is also highly applicable to the design of potential new treatments for diseases caused by other human coronaviruses that may emerge in the future.  We look forward to continued success in this program and to additional discussions with prospective partners to support the development of these compounds into candidates suitable for clinical trials."  

Sosei Heptares is looking to establish collaborations with industry partners to support this program and also to contribute its unique expertise to other areas under investigation as part of the global effort by the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries to find new treatments for COVID-19.

The Company has created a [email protected] contact address for companies and researchers who would like to discuss possible collaborations.

References

1. R. Hilgenfeld, Febs J. (2014), 281, 4085-4096

2. T. Pillaiyar, et al, J. Med. Chem. (2016), 59, 6595-6628

3. L. Zhang, et al, Science (2020) DOI: 10.1126/science.abb3405

4. Z. Jin, et al, Nature (2020) DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2223-y

About Sosei Heptares

We are an international biopharmaceutical group focused on the discovery and early development of new medicines originating from our proprietary GPCR-targeted StaR^® technology and structure-based drug design platform capabilities. We are advancing a broad and deep pipeline of novel medicines across multiple therapeutic areas, including neurology, immunology, gastroenterology and inflammatory diseases.

We have established partnerships with some of the world's leading pharmaceutical companies, including AbbVie, AstraZeneca, Genentech (Roche), Novartis, Pfizer and Takeda and additionally with multiple emerging technology companies. Sosei Heptares is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan with corporate and R&D facilities in Cambridge, UK.

"Sosei Heptares" is the corporate brand and trademark of Sosei Group Corporation, which is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (ticker: 4565). Sosei, Heptares, the logo and StaR^® are trademarks of Sosei Group companies.

For more information, please visit https://www.soseiheptares.com/

LinkedIn: @soseiheptaresco | Twitter: @soseiheptaresco | YouTube: @soseiheptaresco

Enquiries:

Sosei Heptares – Media and Investor Relations

Hironoshin Nomura, SVP Investor Relations and Corporate Strategy
+81 (0)3 6679 2178 | [email protected]

Shinichiro Nishishita, VP Investor Relations, Head of Regulatory Disclosures
+81 (0)3 5210 3399 | [email protected]

Citigate Dewe Rogerson

Yas Fukuda – Japanese Media
+81 (0)3 4360 9234 | [email protected]

Mark Swallow, David Dible – International Media
+44 (0)20 7638 9571 | [email protected]

Forward-looking statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements about the discovery, development and commercialization of products. Various risks may cause Sosei Group Corporation's actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including: adverse results in clinical development programs; failure to obtain patent protection for inventions; commercial limitations imposed by patents owned or controlled by third parties; dependence upon strategic alliance partners to develop and commercialize products and services; difficulties or delays in obtaining regulatory approvals to market products and services resulting from development efforts; the requirement for substantial funding to conduct research and development and to expand commercialization activities; and product initiatives by competitors. As a result of these factors, prospective investors are cautioned not to rely on any forward-looking statements. We disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE Sosei Heptares