Cereno Scientific has made a name for itself in the field of epigenetic modulation in cardiovascular diseases (CVD) thanks to the work done with its lead candidate, CS1Through its mechanism of action, CS1 has the potential to treat a broad spectrum of cardiovascular diseases in a completely new way, thereby meeting a very large unmet need in what is the leading cause of death in the world.
CS014 – a novel epigenetic modulator
CS1, which is being developed for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), will soon begin phase II studies, read more about the study timeline here; however, it is not the company's only candidate with epigenetic modulation properties.
In 2019, Cereno Scientific acquired a program called CS014 from Emeriti Bio, a biotechnology company also based in AstraZeneca BioVentureHub. CS014, like CS1, is an HDAV inhibitor with epigenetic modulation properties in cardiovascular diseases and therefore it was an obvious choice for Cereno to add CS014 to the portfolio, especially as one of the company's goals has always been to treat a broad spectrum of cardiovascular diseases, something that both CS1 and CS014 have the potential to do.
Full preclinical program with the University of Michigan
Since the acquisition, Cereno Scientific and Emeriti Bio have collaborated to further investigate the therapeutic potential of CS014, and last year Cereno Scientific collaborated with University of Michigan to build on the company's preclinical drug development, which included CS014.
Following promising results with CS014, Cereno Scientific has announced that it will expand its collaboration with the University of Michigan to include a full preclinical development program. The goal of the agreement now signed is to advance CS014 into a Phase I clinical program, thereby expanding Cereno Scientific's portfolio of clinical-stage candidates with epigenetic potential in cardiovascular diseases.
Dr. Michael Holinstat, who leads the studies at the University of Michigan Medical School, was very positive about continuing work on CS014:
»I am pleased to continue the work with CS014 and Cereno. The results from the initial studies show promising potential for the program and we look forward to fully defining and documenting CS014 in a preclinical program.«
Cereno's preclinical development program is growing
This is the second agreement between Cereno Scientific and the University of Michigan in a week. Last week, the two parties agreed to initiate a full preclinical development program with CS585, a stable, selective and potent IP (prostacyclin) receptor agonist, as in initial animal models in vivo has shown potential to influence disease mechanisms to significantly advance treatments for a number of cardiovascular diseases. Read more about CS585 hereThe agreement means that Cereno now has two ongoing preclinical development programs running in parallel with the goal of advancing to clinical phase I. first-in-humanstudy.
The two agreements are a clear sign that Cereno Scientific has high ambitions to generate more value by expanding its portfolio. Adding CS014 and CS585 to the company's preclinical development portfolio significantly increases the opportunities to further benefit from the successes already achieved. As the two preclinical programs develop over the next 24 months, Cereno will share more information about them and BioStock will follow this closely.
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