Research & Development

Inimune technology focuses on the discovery, optimization and development of new immunomodulatory therapeutics for the treatment or prevention of allergy, autoimmunity, upper respiratoty tract infections and cancer, by targeting innate immune receptors.

Allergies are among the most common chronic conditions worldwide. Allergies are a number of conditions caused by hypersensitivity of the immune system to something in the environment that usually causes little problem in most people.

Allergies include hay fever, food allergies, atopic dermatitis, allergic asthma, insect stings. Symptoms may include red eyes, an itchy rash, runny nose, shortness of breath, or swelling. The severity of allergies varies from person to person and can range from minor irritation to anaphylaxis — a potentially life-threatening emergency.

While most allergies can’t be cured, a number of treatments can help relieve allergy symptoms. Inimmune is developing technology that redirects the immune response caused by allergens to counteract and eliminate the allergic response.

Microorganisms isolated from extreme environments have proven to be a good source for discovery of novel, bioactive compounds. A co-culture of two extremophilic fungi, Penicillium fuscum and P. camembertii/clavigerum, that were isolated from a single sample of surface water from the Berkeley Pit Lake superfund site yielded a novel antibiotic, Berkeleylactone A (BA), with activity against methicllin resistant S. aureus (MRSA). It was also screened against sever other gram positive strains and demonstrated excellent anti-microbial activity. Screening against gram negative strains demonstrated that derivitization of the core scaffold results in greatly enhanced gram negative antibiotic activity without subsequent loss of gram positive cytotoxicity.

Inimmune possess an exclusive right to license BA and its derivatives for commercial use and is currently pursuing development of this unique new class of compounds.

Every year, cancer claims the lives of more than half a million Americans and is the second leading cause of death in the United States. Novel immunotherapies against both hematological and solid malignancies have come to the forefront of treating these diseases and have demonstrated great promise. Inimmune’s novel TLR agonists show great promise as adjuvant therapy when paired standard therapies such as chemotherapy, radiation or other immunotherapies. Inimmune is pursuing development of these agonists in several solid tumor malignancies.

Image adapted from http://dyersburgskinandallergyclinic.com/?p=311

Upper respiratory tract infections (URI or URTI) are illnesses caused by an acute infection which involves the upper respiratory tract including the nose, sinuses, pharynx or larynx. This commonly includes tonsillitis, pharyngitis, laryngitis, sinusitis, otitis media, and the common cold.

The vast majority of upper respiratory infections are caused by respiratory viruses (rhinoviruses, influenza virus, respiratory syncytial virus) and are self-limited. But in people suffering from asthma and COPD, URTI infections are the major cause of exacerbations of disease and can require acute care.

Inimmune is developing immunomodulators that induce broad antiviral innate immunity for the reduction of viral URT and associated exacerbations in asthma and COPD patients.

An autoimmune disease results from a malfunction in the immune system where healthy cells are mistaken for foreign invaders, causing the immune system to attack these healthy cells.

According to the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association (AARDA), autoimmune disease affects up to 50 million Americans. Autoimmune diseases include rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis), and type I diabetes among many others. Currently, treatment for autoimmune diseases focuses on relieving symptoms because there is no curative therapy.

Inimmune is developing technology that may interrupt the chain of events involved in autoimmune disease by targeting specific receptors involved in the autoimmune disease.

Image adapted from http://healthfactsdirectory.com/autoimmune-disease-what/