Transgene and BioInvent Extend their Collaboration to Develop Multifunctional Oncolytic Viruses for the Treatment of Solid Tumors

STRASBOURG, France & LUND, Sweden–(BUSINESS WIRE)–lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/InvirIO?src=hash" target="_blank"gt;#InvirIOlt;/agt;–Regulatory News:

Transgene (Paris:TNG) (Euronext Paris: TNG), a biotech company that
designs and develops virus-based immunotherapies for the treatment of
solid tumors and BioInvent International AB (OMXS: BINV), a biotech
company focused on the discovery and development of novel
immuno-regulatory antibodies to treat cancer, announce the extension of
their collaboration to co-develop multi-functional oncolytic viruses
(OV) encoding for undisclosed antibodies sequences capable of treating a
broad range of solid tumors.

Under the terms of the extension agreement, Transgene will contribute
its industry-leading OV design and engineering expertise, some
non-antibody transgenes, as well as its proprietary engineered vaccinia
virus (TK-, RR-) backbone, which forms the basis of its Invir.IO^TM
platform. BioInvent will provide its cancer biology and antibody
expertise to the collaboration as well as one or more antibodies
sequences, generated through its proprietary n-CoDeR®/F.I.R.S.T.^TM
platforms. Certain sequences for an undisclosed target will be selected
for encoding within Transgene’s Invir.IO^TM backbone to create
a multi-functional OV.

In November 2018, Transgene and BioInvent presented positive data from
their initial collaboration at the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer
(SITC). These initial data covered the collaboration’s work on an
anti-CTLA-4 antibody-armed oncolytic vaccinia virus, based on
Transgene’s proprietary vaccinia virus (TK-, RR-) backbone. This
enhanced oncolytic vaccinia virus demonstrated its ability to ensure the
expression of BioInvent’s anti-CTLA-4 antibody in the tumor with low
systemic exposure. It also showed improved efficacy and a better safety
profile when compared to the combination of the antibody and the
non-armed corresponding oncolytic virus given individually in
pre-clinical models.

Consistent with the initial collaboration, research and development
costs as well as revenues and royalties from the multifunctional OVs
generated as a result of the new collaboration will be shared 50:50.

Encoding BioInvent’s antibodies sequences in Transgene’s proprietary
Invir.IO^TM platform, for a direct expression into the tumor,
promises to optimize the efficacy and tolerability of these antibodies.
Both Transgene and BioInvent believe that these novel multifunctional
OVs could be significantly more effective than co-administering an OV
and an antibody together.

Philippe Archinard, PhD, Chairman and CEO of Transgene, said: “We
are pleased to extend the scope of our highly productive collaboration
with BioInvent. We believe that the next generation of multi-functional
oncolytic viruses expressing BioInvent’s highly targeted immune
modulators directly in the tumor micro-environment will deliver much
improved overall survival outcomes in patients with solid tumors. This
agreement further expands Transgene’s broad portfolio of oncolytics
virus in development, the first of which is expected to enter the clinic
in 2020.”

Commenting on the agreement, Martin Welschof, CEO of BioInvent, said:
“The extension of our collaboration with Transgene opens up further
opportunities for both companies to combine their expertise and
knowledge to develop antibody oncolytic virus combinations capable of
treating a broad range of solid tumors. By leveraging BioInvent’s unique
and proprietary n-CoDeR®/F.I.R.S.T.^TM platforms, we will be
able to develop a number of novel first-in-class antibodies that could
be delivered directly into the tumor via Transgene’s vaccinia viral
backbone, potentially enhancing their efficacy and improving their side
effect profile.”

-End-

Notes to editors

About Transgene

Transgene (Euronext: TNG) is a publicly traded French biotechnology
company focused on designing and developing targeted immunotherapies for
the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases. Transgene’s programs
utilize viral vector technology with the goal of indirectly or directly
killing infected or cancerous cells. The Company’s lead clinical-stage
programs are: TG4010, a therapeutic vaccine against non-small cell lung
cancer, Pexa-Vec, an oncolytic virus against liver cancer, and TG4001, a
therapeutic vaccine against HPV-positive head and neck cancers. The
Company has several other programs in clinical development, including
TG1050 (a therapeutic vaccine for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B)
and TG6002 (an oncolytic virus for the treatment of solid tumors).

With its proprietary Invir.IO^TM, Transgene builds on its
expertise in viral vectors engineering to design a new generation of
multifunctional oncolytic viruses.

myvac^TM, an individualized MVA-based immunotherapy
platform designed to integrate neoantigens, completes this innovative
research portfolio. TG4050, the first candidate selected from the myvac^TM
platform, will enter the clinic for the treatment of ovarian cancer and
head and neck cancer.

Additional information about Transgene is available at www.transgene.fr

Follow us on Twitter: @TransgeneSA

Disclaimer

This press release contains forward-looking statements, which are
subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual
results to differ materially from those anticipated. The occurrence of
any of these risks could have a significant negative outcome for the
Company’s activities, perspectives, financial situation, results,
regulatory authorities’ agreement with development phases, and
development. The Company’s ability to commercialize its products depends
on but is not limited to the following factors: positive pre-clinical
data may not be predictive of human clinical results, the success of
clinical studies, the ability to obtain financing and/or partnerships
for product manufacturing, development and commercialization, and
marketing approval by government regulatory authorities. For a
discussion of risks and uncertainties which could cause the Company’s
actual results, financial condition, performance or achievements to
differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, please
refer to the Risk Factors (“Facteurs de Risque”) section of the Document
de Référence, available on the AMF website (http://www.amf-france.org)
or on Transgene’s website (www.transgene.fr).
Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are
made, and Transgene undertakes no obligation to update these
forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in
the future.

About BioInvent

BioInvent International AB (OMXS: BINV) is focused on the discovery and
development of novel and first-in-class immuno-modulatory antibodies to
treat cancer. The Company’s lead program BI-1206, is currently in Phase
l/ll for non-Hodgkin lymphoma and chronic lymphatic leukemia.
BioInvent’s pre-clinical portfolio is focused on targeting key immune
suppressive cells and pathways of the tumor microenvironment, including
regulatory T cells, tumor-associated myeloid cells and mechanisms of
antibody drug-resistance. The Company has a strategic research
collaboration with Pfizer Inc., and partnerships with Transgene, Bayer
Pharma, Daiichi Sankyo, and Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma. BioInvent
generates near term revenues from its fully integrated manufacturing
unit producing antibodies for third parties for research through to
late-stage clinical trials. More information is available at www.bioinvent.com.

Disclaimer

The press release contains statements about the future, consisting of
subjective assumptions and forecasts for future scenarios. Predictions
for the future only apply as the date they are made and are, by their
very nature, in the same way as research and development work in the
biotech segment, associated with risk and uncertainty. With this in
mind, the actual outcome may deviate significantly from the scenarios
described in this press release.

Contacts

Transgene
Jean-Philippe Del
+33
(0)3 88 27 91 04
[email protected]

Media
contacts
Citigate Dewe Rogerson
EU: David
Dible / Sylvie Berrebi
US: Marine Perrier-Barthez
+ 44 (0)20
7638 9571 / +1 424 341 9140
[email protected]

BioInvent
Martin
Welschof, CEO
+46 (0)46 286 85 50
[email protected]

Media contacts
Hans Herklots, LifeSci Advisors
+41
79 598 71 49
[email protected]