PureTech Health PLC Brain Lymphatics Published in Nature Neuroscience
September 17 2018 - 10:15AM
RNS Non-Regulatory
TIDMPRTC
PureTech Health PLC
17 September 2018
17 September 2018
PureTech Health plc
PureTech Health Collaborator Publishes in Nature Neuroscience
Highlighting Key Role of Brain Lymphatics in Neuroinflammatory
Conditions Like Multiple Sclerosis
Work identifies junction between brain and lymphatics system,
offering new insights into disease pathology
Novel therapeutic approach to target neuroinflammation enabled
by a deeper understanding of pathogenic immune cell trafficking
between the CNS and the brain lymphatics
Underlying intellectual property is exclusively licensed by
PureTech Health and is being developed internally
PureTech Health plc (LSE: PRTC) ("PureTech Health"), an advanced
biopharmaceutical company developing novel medicines for
dysfunctions of the Brain-Immune-Gut (BIG) Axis, today notes the
publication of research in Nature Neuroscience that identifies the
physical connection between the brain's fluid reservoirs and the
meningeal lymphatics, through which immune cells traffic out of the
central nervous system (CNS). The publication also demonstrates
that modulation of this trafficking pattern has the potential to
improve symptoms in many neuroinflammatory conditions, such as
multiple sclerosis (MS). These new insights build on foundational
science published as the cover story of Nature in August 2018, and
the underlying intellectual property is being developed within
PureTech's Internal division.
The new research was conducted by PureTech Health collaborator
Jonathan Kipnis, PhD, Harrison Distinguished Teaching Professor and
Chair, Department of Neuroscience, and Director, Center for Brain
Immunology and Glia, at the University of Virginia School of
Medicine. Dr Kipnis' latest work shows the trafficking of
pathogenic T cells between the cerebrospinal fluid and the
meningeal lymphatics in a preclinical model of MS, making it the
first to identify the role of the meningeal lymphatic system in the
context of neuroinflammatory conditions.
Joseph Bolen, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer at PureTech Health,
said: "The latest discovery is the third chapter in the brain
lymphatics narrative that began in 2015 when Dr Kipnis' laboratory
first reported the existence of the meningeal lymphatics. The
second chapter, published just a few weeks ago in Nature, revealed
that the meningeal lymphatics are the principal fluid drainage
mechanism of the brain and that this function is critical for brain
health. This latest research identifies the direct connection -
or
'hot spot' - between the brain and the meningeal lymphatic
system, which offers a novel therapeutic approach for potentially
addressing these debilitating and devastating neurological
diseases."
Dr Kipnis commented on this announcement, "This work further
suggests that the lymphatic system plays a critical role in the
central nervous system, specifically, the regulation of meningeal
immunity and neuroinflammation. I look forward to working with
PureTech Health as they further advance these findings to
potentially improve intervention and treatment of neuroinflammatory
disease."
About the CNS Lymphatics Technology
The central nervous system (CNS) was previously thought to be
devoid of lymphatic vasculature; however, research published in
Nature in 2015 identified the meningeal lymphatic and glymphatic
systems as key maintenance organs within the brain. The biological
crosstalk at the CNS-immune interface has been further supported by
evidence published as the cover story in Nature in August of 2018,
which demonstrated that modulation of lymphatic function in the
brain may potentially prevent or delay diseases associated with
neurodegeneration, including Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's
disease, and age-associated cognitive decline. This CNS-immune
interface has also been supported by evidence published in Nature
Neuroscience in September 2018, which identifies a direct
connection between the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and the meningeal
lymphatic system, suggesting that modulation of the meningeal
lymphatic vessel network has the potential to ameliorate symptoms
in CNS disorders, such as multiple sclerosis. These insights
underlie PureTech's approach to designing novel categories of
therapeutics to address debilitating and devastating CNS disorders,
and the related IP has been exclusively licensed to PureTech Health
from the University of Virginia Licensing & Ventures Group.
About PureTech Health
PureTech Health (LSE: PRTC) is an advanced biopharmaceutical
company developing novel medicines for dysfunctions of the
Brain-Immune-Gut (BIG) Axis. The Company has developed deep
insights into the connection between the individual components of
these systems and the resulting role in many chronic diseases,
which have proven resistant to established therapeutic approaches.
By harnessing this emerging field of human biology, PureTech Health
is developing new categories of medicines with the potential to
have great impact on people with serious diseases.
PureTech Health is advancing a rich pipeline of innovative
therapies across two divisions: the Affiliates division and the
Internal division. Its Affiliates division includes two product
candidates that have been filed with the US Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) for review and several other novel clinical
and pre-clinical programmes. These affiliates are developing
ground-breaking platforms and therapeutic candidates in
collaboration with some of the world's leading experts.
PureTech's Internal division is advancing a pipeline fuelled by
recent discoveries in lymphatics and immune cell trafficking to
modulate disease in a tissue-specific manner. These programmes
leverage the transport and biodistribution of various immune system
components for the targeted treatment of diseases with major unmet
needs, including cancers, autoimmune diseases, and neuroimmune
disorders.
For more information, visit www.puretechhealth.com or connect
with us on Twitter @puretechh.
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Contact:
Investors EU media US media
Allison Mead Talbot Ben Atwell, Rob Winder Tom Donovan
+1 617 651 3156 +44 (0) 20 3727 1000 +1 857 559 3397
amt@puretechhealth.com ben.atwell@FTIconsulting.com tom@tenbridgecommunications.com
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END
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