Antibe Therapeutics Looking for More Licensing Deals

Antibe Therapeutics (TSXV:ATE, OTCQB:ATBPF) is trying to change the game of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID)—the “largest category of drugs globally,” CEO Dan Legault told INN.

In Toronto, at the Bloom Burton & Co. Healthcare Investor Conference which was held from May 2-3, the Investing News Network (INN) caught up with Daniel Legault, Antibe’s CEO and president to discuss the company’s recent clinical study results, licensing deals and plans for other products in its pipeline. To listen to the full interview, watch the video above.

“An anti-inflammatory pain killer which we do is used perhaps by a billion people around the world,” Legault told INN. About 20 percent of people on this drug experience gastrointestinal issues (GI)—such as ulcers and bleeding in the stomach and the intestines, he added.

With the company’s hydrogen sulfide (H2S) Platform it enables linking an NSAID molecule with a hydrogen sulfide-releasing molecule. The properties of this exchange and how the body utilizes the H2S results in an improved medicine. ATB-346, Antibe’s osteoarthritis candidate is a H2S-releasing derivative of naproxen, which is the most commonly prescribed NSAID in North America, Legault said.

The results from Antibe’s most Phase 2B trial in March with ATB-346 showed patients with the drug had a 2.5 percent ulceration rate versus the patients on naproxen ulceration rate was at 42.1 percent. Legault said these results are, “very consistent with [the company’s] years of research.”

In August 2016, Antibe announced a successful Phase 2A clinical trial, proving the drug was safe and well-tolerated.

The company is first focusing on regulatory approval for a prescription drug but intends to bring its drugs over the counter later. The company is now talking to bigger pharmaceutical partners to arrange a larger controlled Phase 2 trial on pain effectiveness expected to begin in the end of July, Legault said.

In terms of additional partnerships, Antibe is looking for big pharma companies involved in NSAIDS that have a global outreach as well as large markets such as the US, Japan and Europe.

Aside from ATB-346 for osteoarthritis therapy, the company is working on two other NSAIDS in preclinical development, ATB-352 and ATB-340 for acute pain and anti-thrombotic, respectively.

ATB-352 could serve as replacement for opioid prescriptions, but the current prescription options are damaging on the GI system. In animal trials, the drug candidate showed no damage, and the company intends to demonstrate the same in human proof of concept trials.

The other, ATB-340 is a version of a low dose aspirin which may provide risk reduction for stroke and digestive system cancers, including colon cancer which is a major killer in the US. Additionally, for the animal trials with this drug no damage has been shown in the trials, compared to significant damage with aspirin.

Investor Takeaway

This rest of the year should provide good news for investors interested in the company. “We have done two regional licensing deals over the past several years, for twenty countries,” Legault told INN. “We are continuing those efforts [which have] nicely accelerated with our recent results.”

Particularly as it relates to its next Phase 2 trial and announcements about new licensing deals or partnerships, and the preclinical drug candidates moving into the clinic.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Gabrielle Lakusta, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

Editorial Disclosure: The Investing News Network does not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the information reported in the interviews it conducts. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not reflect the opinions of the Investing News Network and do not constitute investment advice. All readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence.