Immunobiome Registers Patent for Microbiome-Derived Polysaccharide with Hypersensitive Immune Response Suppression Function

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunseok Yoo] Immunobiome, a microbiome therapeutic research and development company, announced on the 11th that it has discovered a substance in the gut microbiome that can selectively suppress immune hypersensitivity reactions involved in causing autoimmune and allergic diseases, and has completed patent registration for the strain, substance, and function.

Through this patent registration, Immunobiome has secured a total of three patents related to the technology of ‘novel Bifidobacterium bifidum strain and strain-derived polysaccharides.’ This will accelerate the development of next-generation microbiome-based therapeutics with a clear anti-inflammatory mechanism of action (MOA).

The newly secured strain with ‘immune-regulating T cell induction function derived from microbiome polysaccharides’ has a mechanism of action that suppresses hypersensitive immunity and inflammation by inducing the generation of Foxp3+ Treg cells (immune-regulating T cells possessing the specific protein Foxp3 involved in suppressing immune responses) through the polysaccharide (CSGG) on the strain’s surface.

Through this mechanism, it is expected to function as a therapeutic agent for inflammatory and autoimmune diseases such as IBD (inflammatory bowel disease), SLE (systemic lupus erythematosus), ASD (autism spectrum disorder), and GvHD (graft-versus-host disease). In fact, the research team confirmed preventive and therapeutic efficacy in animal models of inflammatory bowel disease and autism by administering polysaccharides with specific structures.

Immunobiome is currently proceeding with procedures for clinical entry in 2022 to commercialize the strain and active substances as pharmaceuticals. It has partnered with BIOSE, a French microbiome CDMO (contract development and manufacturing organization) company with world-class facilities and manufacturing know-how, to begin production of clinical samples, and plans to start toxicity testing in the first half of 2022.

An Immunobiome official stated, “Unlike other microbiome therapeutics, by identifying the functional substances of the strain and precisely elucidating their mechanisms of action, we can provide theoretical grounds for target disease selection and combination therapy with other drugs,” adding, “Due to the strain’s characteristics as a Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) grade strain by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), safety is secured while reducing side effects and enhancing therapeutic efficacy through combination therapy with other treatments.”

He continued, “Not only have we secured a strain with therapeutic efficacy, but by possessing technology to identify and isolate the functional molecules (effector molecules), we have laid the foundation for developing next-generation microbiome therapeutics based on active substances, surpassing conventional microbiome therapeutics that use the strain itself.”

Meanwhile, the paper on the Bifidobacterium bifidum strain and strain-derived polysaccharide technology was published in the international immunology journal Science Immunology. It has also been introduced by the global academic publisher Elsevier.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.