Biosplice Therapeutics Announces Department of Defense (DoD) Award to Fund Collaboration with The Roskamp Institute to Advance its Neurology Program
The competitive Department of Defense “Traumatic Brain Injury and Psychological Health Research Program (TBIPHRP) Translational Research Award” will fund preclinical development of Biosplice’s DYRK inhibitors in traumatic brain injury (TBI) models
SAN DIEGO, March 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Biosplice Therapeutics, Inc. (“Biosplice”) announced today that its collaboration with The Roskamp Institute (“Roskamp”), aimed at developing novel therapies for TBI using Biosplice’s promising small molecule DYRK (dual-specificity tyrosine phosphorylation-regulated kinase) inhibitors has been selected for funding by the DoD office of the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP). As part of the collaboration, the DoD TBIPHRP Award will fund Roskamp to undertake preclinical development in their well characterized TBI models using Biosplice’s DYRK inhibitors. This translational work could lead to future clinical trials for TBI patients.
The data from this collaboration are anticipated to inform the development of Biosplice’s DYRK inhibitor class in the treatment of degenerative neurological conditions, including various tauopathies. TBI, along with Alzheimer’s Disease, certain Frontotemporal Dementias and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) are in a class of neurological disorders characterized by an aggregation of harmful tau proteins. Because the DYRK protein plays a key role in the formation of harmful tau protein aggregates, Biosplice believes that its potent and selective DYRK inhibitors can potentially constitute effective, first-in-class therapies.
“We are pleased to collaborate with Roskamp in this exciting research program endeavoring to address a great unmet need for effective therapies for TBI,” said Dr. Yusuf Yazici, Chief Medical Officer of Biosplice. “DoD’s selection of the Biosplice/Roskamp collaboration validates years of our industry-leading development of highly-selective DYRK inhibitors.”
Erich Horsley, CFO and CBO of Biosplice, added, “Over the past 10 years, our team at Biosplice has considerably deepened its chemical and clinical expertise in selective inhibition of DYRK and CLK kinases. This collaboration with Roskamp will help accelerate the development of our novel neurology therapies, ranging from TBI to ALS to Alzheimer’s disease.”
This award builds upon more than four years of scientific collaboration between Roskamp and Biosplice. Previous research conducted by Roskamp has demonstrated efficacy in TBI animal models with Biosplice’s first-generation DYRK inhibitors.
About Roskamp:
Since opening its doors in 2003, The Roskamp Institute, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, has been a leader in the global effort to better understand and treat diseases of the mind. The foundation for the Institute’s work was set more than a decade ago by the Institute’s two lead researchers, Drs. Michael Mullan and Fiona Crawford, who were key members of a pioneering team of scientists who, in the early 1990s, discovered the first known mutations causing early onset Alzheimer’s Disease in the amyloid gene. Research at Roskamp is focused on Alzheimer’s Disease, Traumatic Brain Injury, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Gulf War Illness and Red Tide.
About Biosplice:
Biosplice stands at the forefront of research concentrating on the study and regulation of Cdc2-like kinases (CLKs) and dual-specificity tyrosine-regulated kinases (DYRKs). These kinases play pivotal roles in cell cycle regulation, splicing, and neurodevelopment, marking them as critical targets for therapeutic intervention in a range of diseases, including osteoarthritis, cancer, neurological disorders, and diabetes. With a robust chemical platform for kinase inhibition and a deep understanding of kinase signaling pathways, Biosplice leverages cutting-edge technologies to discover and develop highly selective kinase inhibitors. Biosplice’s drugs in clinical development include lorecivivint for osteoarthritis (in Phase 3) and cirtuvivint for numerous cancers, with a broad pre-clinical pipeline that encompasses Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes and other degenerative conditions.
Learn more at https://www.biosplice.com.
Corporate Contact:
Erich Horsley
Biosplice Therapeutics, Inc.
erich.horsley@biosplice.com
858-365-0200
