Selexis SA and Hoba Therapeutics Team Up to Advance Hoba's Investigational Neuropathic Pain Treatment into the Clinic

Selexis SA and Hoba Therapeutics announced today that they have entered into an agreement to advance the development of Hoba's clinical candidate HB-086 (rhMeteorin) for the treatment of peripheral neuropathic pain. Under the agreement, Selexis is leveraging its proprietary SUREtechnology Platform to rapidly develop a stable, high-performance research cell bank (RCB) expressing HB-086, an endogenous protein found only in the nervous system. Hoba is working with Selexis to advance HB-086 into the clinic as part of a consortium of national and international partners funded by the Innovation Fund Denmark.

"It's been fulfilling to work with Hoba as a cell line development partner that's been able to successfully express viable levels of HB-086 in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells," said Marco Bocci, PhD, DPharm, Selexis vice president, licensing and business development. "We're honored to be a part of the consortium working to move HB-086 into the clinic with the goal of making it available to physicians for the eventual treatment of patients. This population is in dire need of better treatment options and it's exciting to have the opportunity to contribute to the next generation of pain management drugs."

Selexis' modular SUREtechnology Platform facilitates the rapid, stable, and cost-effective production of virtually any recombinant protein and provides seamless integration of the biologics development continuum, spanning discovery to commercialization.

"Cell line developers utilizing more traditional approaches lack the benefits of Selexis' technology and expertise, which we needed to advance HB-086. Selexis was able to overcome the challenges of expressing HB-086 and develop a research cell bank that makes it possible for us to enter clinical study quickly – and that's great news given that many individuals experience debilitating pain," said Hoba Therapeutics' CEO Kenneth Petersen, MD, PhD. "It is our mission to introduce treatments that will bring relief to all patients who suffer from neuropathic pain without the risk of addiction – a benefit to themselves and society. Selexis is instrumental in helping us achieve this."

About HB-086

HB-086 (recombinant human Meteorin) is a 31 kD secreted protein that promotes neurite outgrowth and glial differentiation in the central nervous system. Significant pain relieving properties of HB-086 have been demonstrated in several gold standard preclinical models and the effect is sustained for a significant period following cessation of treatment, demonstrating a disease modifying potential for the drug. Hoba Therapeutics is developing HB-086 as a treatment for peripheral neuropathy and associated pain.