Rehovot, Israel – August 15, 2023 – Biomica Ltd., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative microbiome-based therapeutics and a subsidiary of Evogene Ltd. (Nasdaq: EVGN, TASE: EVGN), has announced the opening of a second site at The Davidoff Cancer Center for its ongoing Phase I clinical trial of its immuno-oncology drug candidate, BMC128. The trial aims to assess the safety and tolerability of BMC128 in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) immunotherapy, Bristol Myers Squibb’s Opdivo®, for the treatment of refractory patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), melanoma, or renal cell carcinoma (RCC).
The Davidoff Center for the Treatment and Research of Cancer, situated at Beilinson Hospital, Rabin Medical Center (RMC), holds a preeminent position as Israel’s first and foremost comprehensive cancer center, known for its international leadership in cancer care. This state-of-the-art and patient-centric facility diligently serves over 200,000 patients annually, both from Israel and around the globe.
This new site at The Davidoff Center represents another milestone in Biomica’s commitment to advancing cutting-edge clinical research in immuno-oncology. The company established its first site at the Rambam Health Care Campus, where the first patient was dosed in July 2022 in the Phase I study of its Microbiome-Based immuno-oncology drug.
Prof. Gal Markel, Director of Davidoff Cancer Center and Biomica’s Scientific Advisory Board member, said: “I am excited about Biomica’s significant progress in their Phase I clinical trial at The Davidoff Cancer Center. As a Biomica Scientific Advisory Board member, I am proud to contribute my expertise to this important research endeavor. The exploration of microbiome-based immuno-oncology therapies represents a promising frontier in cancer treatment. I look forward to witnessing the potential impact of this approach on refractory patients with NSCLC, melanoma, or RCC.”
Dr. Elran Haber, CEO of Biomica, expressed his pride: “The opening of this new site at The Davidoff Center, a world-renowned cancer institution, marks an important milestone for Biomica’s BMC128 clinical program. Collaborating with esteemed Prof. Gal Markel further strengthens our commitment to advancing clinical research and expediting patient recruitment. We are resolute in our pursuit of accelerating progress and bringing hope to patients through innovative therapies.”
About Biomica Ltd.:
Biomica is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative microbiome-based therapeutics utilizing PRISM system, a proprietary computational platform powered by Evogene’s MicroBoost AI tech-engine. licensed from Evogene. Biomica aims to identify and characterize disease-related microbiome entities and to develop novel therapeutics based on these understandings. The company is focused on the development of therapies for antibiotic resistant bacteria, immuno-oncology, and microbiome-related gastrointestinal (GI) disorders. Biomica is a subsidiary of Evogene Ltd. (Nasdaq: EVGN, TASE: EVGN).
For more information, please visit www.biomicamed.com
About Evogene Ltd.:
Evogene (Nasdaq: EVGN, TASE: EVGN) is a computational biology company aiming to revolutionize the development of life-science-based products by utilizing cutting-edge technologies to increase the probability of success while reducing development time and cost. Evogene established three unique tech-engines – MicroBoost AI, ChemPass AI, and GeneRator AI – leveraging Big Data and Artificial Intelligence and incorporating deep multidisciplinary understanding in life sciences. Each tech-engine is focused on the discovery and development of products based on one of the following core components: microbes (MicroBoost AI), small molecules (ChemPass AI), and genetic elements (GeneRator AI).
Evogene uses its tech-engines to develop products through subsidiaries and strategic partnerships. Evogene’s subsidiaries currently utilize the tech-engines to develop human microbiome-based therapeutics by Biomica, ag-biologicals by Lavie Bio, ag-chemicals by AgPlenus, medical cannabis products by Canonic and castor varieties, for the biofuel and other industries, by Casterra.
For more information, please visit www.evogene.com.
Forward-Looking Statements:
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” relating to future events. These statements may be identified by words such as “will”, “may”, “could”, “expects”, “intends”, “anticipates”, “plans”, “believes”, “scheduled”, “estimates”, “demonstrates”, or words of similar meaning. For example, Evogene and Biomica are using forward-looking statements in this press release when they discuss the safety and tolerability of BMC128 and the success of microbiome-based immuno-oncology therapies in cancer treatment. Such statements are based on current expectations, estimates, projections and assumptions, describe opinions about future events, and involve certain risks and uncertainties which are difficult to predict and are not guarantees of future performance. Therefore, actual future results, performance or achievements of Evogene and its subsidiaries may differ materially from what is expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors, many of which are beyond the control of Evogene and its subsidiaries, including, without limitation, those risk factors contained in Evogene’s reports filed with applicable securities authorities. Evogene and its subsidiaries disclaim any obligation or commitment to update these forward-looking statements to reflect future events or developments or changes in expectations, estimates, projections, and assumptions.
Contacts
Rachel Pomerantz Gerber
Head of Investor Relations at Evogene
rachel.pomerantz@evogene.com
Tel: +972-8-9311901