11 September 2018 - - US-based clinical stage company ImmusanT, Inc has received an investment from the JDRF T1D Fund, a venture philanthropy fund exclusively devoted to finding and funding the best type 1 diabetes commercial opportunities, the company said.

The funding marks the JDRF T1D Fund's first direct investment in ImmusanT and in peptide immunotherapy, an approach that has the potential to positively alter the immune response involved in multiple autoimmune diseases. Terms of the financing were not disclosed.

With the funds, ImmusanT plans to accelerate the translation of insights and clinical experience gained from its celiac disease program to the development of a novel vaccine candidate for T1D.

The company's lead candidate, Nexvax2, a peptide-based therapeutic vaccine, has demonstrated safety and relevant bioactivity in multiple Phase 1 studies for celiac disease, an-HLA associated disease with many similarities to T1D.

ImmusanT is developing a new class of therapeutic vaccines for people living with autoimmune diseases.

Its Epitope-Specific Immuno-Therapy (ESIT) platform provides a precision medicine approach to restoring immune tolerance across a range of diseases, including celiac disease and type 1 diabetes.

ImmusanT's lead programme, Nexvax2, is in clinical development with the goal of protecting celiac disease patients against the debilitating effects of gluten. 

The JDRF T1D Fund is a venture philanthropy fund accelerating life-changing solutions to treat, prevent and cure type 1 diabetes through catalytic commercial investments.

Through its investments in partnership with private capital, including venture capital, corporations and foundations, the T1D Fund seeks to attract the private investment necessary to advance drugs, devices, diagnostics, and vaccines into the hands of those living with T1D.

The T1D Fund invests in areas strategically aligned with JDRF, the leading global organization funding T1D research, with an exclusive focus on supporting the best commercial opportunities.

The T1D Fund will reinvest any realized gains into new investments to further its mission.