VBL Presents New Data on the Potential of its Novel VB-600 Platform for Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH) and Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA)

VBL Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VBLT) has announced new data for its VB-600 platform of antibodies targeting MOSPD2 (motile sperm domain-containing protein) for treating various inflammatory indications.

As quoted in the press release:

Previously, the Company has demonstrated efficacy of anti-MOSPD2 monoclonal antibodies in multiple sclerosis (MS) models, and novel findings now implicate MOSPD2 as a potential target for NASH and RA as well.  VBL’s study entitled “MOSPD2: Key Regulator of Myeloid Cell Migration and a Novel Target for Treatment of Inflammatory Diseases,” is being presented today at the Keystone Symposia on Myeloid Cells in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Monocytes are immune cells that play a pivotal role in the induction and progression of various inflammatory diseases. Studies have suggested that limiting their migration may improve clinical outcomes in chronic inflammatory diseases; however, thus far it has been a challenging goal, due to the complexity and redundancy of ligands and receptors that regulate the movement of these cells.

VBL has identified new biological findings, which position MOSPD2 as a critical pathway controlling monocyte migration and as a key regulator of disease pathogenesis in different inflammatory autoimmune settings. Company data show that inhibition of MOSPD2 by either knockdown, silencing or proprietary antibodies, results in a significant reduction in the ability of monocytes to migrate, regardless of the inflammatory signals employed to attract them. Accordingly, mice in which the MOSPD2 gene was knocked out, essentially do not develop disease in the widely used experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) model for MS or the Collagen Antibody-Induced Arthritis model for RA. Knockout of this gene also leads to significant reduction in fibrosis in a high-fat-high-carbohydrate model for NASH. VBL’s proprietary monoclonal antibody drug candidates, for which we have demonstrated potency in MS and NASH models, have the potential to become a new therapy in multiple chronic inflammatory indications.

Click here to read the full press release.