31 March 2021 - - Germany-based mRNA technology specialist Ethris GmbH has received positive review from a committee of scientific experts nominated by the Bavarian State Ministry for Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy, for its grant application submitted to the Bavarian government as part of the "BayTherapie2020," grant call-for-proposals, the company said.

Ethris said this positive scientific evaluation places it in strong contention for the grant award and enables the company to outline the funds required to advance its ETH47 program from discovery pharmacology up to completion of clinical Phase 2.

ETH47 is a therapeutic candidate harboring the mRNA blueprint for type III interferon, which can be administered directly to the respiratory tract and can treat early SARS-CoV-2 infection by activating the innate immune system.

This mechanism of action of triggering a person's local immune response at the entry site of the virus is distinctly different from systemically-delivered therapeutic antibodies that aim to block the surface protein of the virus.

By intervening early during a coronavirus infection, ETH47 is designed to stop it before the onset of severe symptoms.

ETH47 was developed using Ethris' proprietary and unique pulmonary SNIM RNA therapeutics platform and has the capability to treat other respiratory viruses in a similar manner due to its broad effectiveness.

BayTherapie2020 is a current call-for-proposals initiated by the Bavarian State Ministry for Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy to fund innovative research and development projects of drug candidates for treatment of COVID-19 in the state of Bavaria, Germany.

Upon receipt of the final award of the funding and building on successful in vitro pharmacology studies, Ethris will continue its ETH47 development program with the goal of rapidly entering clinical studies.

The ETH47 program is independent of the ongoing collaboration Ethris established with Neurimmune to develop an mRNA-based antibody therapy for the treatment of COVID-19.

Ethris has paved a new path from genes to therapeutic proteins using its proprietary, non-immunogenic messenger RNA technology platform to discover, design and develop innovative therapies.

With more than a decade as an mRNA pioneer, we are a leader in delivering stabilized mRNAs directly to the respiratory system via optimized formulation and nebulization technologies.

The company said it is rapidly approaching proof of concept for generating therapeutic antibodies against COVID-19 in the lung with partner Neurimmune while advancing a pipeline of immuno-modulation and mRNA-based protein replacement therapies with the ultimate goal of improving patients' lives.