Cereno Scientifics main focus has been to advance their candidate, CS1, into a Phase II clinical trial targeting the rare cardiovascular disease pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). The work that Cereno Scientific has put in so far appears to be paying off as the company last week presented a timeline for initiating Phase II with a target date of September this year. Read moreHowever, Cereno Scientific has more aces up its sleeve that will be used to further position the company within cardiovascular diseases (CVD).
While CS1 has the potential to be clinically validated in PAH, Cereno Scientific has also laid the foundation for an expanded pipeline by diversifying its candidate portfolio. In fact, the company's preclinical development program has been advancing steadily, with so-called new new chemical entities (NCE) that is being developed for further evaluation, and now Cereno can add another preclinical candidate to its portfolio: CS585.
CS585 – a new candidate in CVD
CS585 is a small molecule that is an analogue of the endogenous metabolite 12-HETrE. It is a stable, selective and potent IP (prostacyclin) receptor agonist. The IP receptor plays a key role in vasodilation and antiplatelet mechanisms, making it an important receptor in the cardiovascular system. Agonists for this receptor have significant potential for the treatment of CVD, and CS585 has shown potential in initial animal models in vivo to influence disease mechanisms to significantly advance treatments in a range of CVDs.
The new addition to Cereno Scientific's candidate portfolio stems from the company's collaboration with University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, USA. The University of Michigan is a top-ranked American public research university with an extensive track record of successful collaborations in the life sciences industry. The collaboration between the two parties began last year with the aim of conducting studies led by Dr. Michael Holinstat to evaluate compounds with primarily antithrombotic properties. Last month, Cereno announced that it had signed an option agreement with the university that gives the company exclusive rights to evaluate the market potential of CS585, a preclinical drug candidate discovered by researchers at the university.
New collaboration agreement for development of CS585
Today, Cereno Scientific unveiled this new preclinical drug candidate when it announced that it has signed a new collaboration agreement with the University of Michigan to work on a full preclinical development program with CS585 leading to IND and the first clinical study. The preclinical work will be conducted at the university, and under the option agreement from last month, if the preclinical evaluation is successful, Cereno can exercise its option to license CS585 for further clinical development and commercialization.
Cereno Scientific CEO Sten R Sörensen was very positive about the agreement:
»Preclinical development with CS585 will begin immediately under the leadership of Dr. Michael Holinstat. We are excited to be working with a research group of this caliber and see a positive journey ahead for both CS585 and Cereno.«
Dr. Michael Holinstat also commented on the agreement in a recent press release:
»My research group and I look forward to continuing a preclinical development program for CS585 together with Cereno. The drug candidate has already provided us with promising data.«
As the preclinical program for CS585 develops over the next 24 months, Cereno Scientific will provide more information about the program and BioStock looks forward to following Cereno Scientific's journey with the new candidate.
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