LYON, FRANCE October 11, 2023 – ErVaccine Technologies (now ErVimmune), a French biotechnology company developing therapeutic vaccines and cellular immunotherapies targeting unconventional tumor antigens, today announced a sponsored research agreement with Servier that will leverage ErVimmune’s
expertise and proprietary platforms to discover biomarkers of response to therapies under development by Servier.
“We are delighted to have established a research collaboration with Servier who has a proven track record in oncology,” said Stéphane Depil, MD, PhD, founder and Executive Chairman of ErVimmune. “Together we will evaluate the impact of modulating a new cancer target on the expression of specific endogenous retroviruses with the aim of discovering novel therapeutic approaches in the field of cancer immunotherapy. Servier, with their deep and integrated capabilities throughout the entire pharmaceutical R&D chain, is an ideal partner for ErVimmune in this development.”
“ErVimmune has a unique platform for the identification and validation of unconventional tumor epitopes. The strong synergies between the Servier research team and ErVimmune’s expertise will allow us to exploit new mechanisms for cancer immunotherapies with the potential to change the cancer treatment landscape
as we know it today,” said Don Simons, PhD, Head of U.S. Pharmacology at Servier.
Under the terms of the agreement Servier will fund research efforts to discover endogenous retrovirus- derived biomarkers and investigate mechanisms that regulate expression of ErVimmune’s proprietary cancer vaccine targets.
About ErVimmune
ErVimmune is a French biotechnology company, founded in October 2019 by Prof. Stéphane Depil, an onco- hematologist and researcher at the Centre Léon Bérard (CLB) and Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Lyon (CRCL), with more than 20 years of experience in pharmaceutical development in oncology. ErVimmune
is a spin-off of CLB / CRCL, specializing in the development of next generation therapeutic vaccines and modified T-cell immunotherapies, targeting new families of “unconventional” tumor antigens such as those derived from human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs). ErVimmune identifies tumor epitopes commonly shared by patients through novel bioinformatics algorithms, validates them by proteomic approaches and immunological assays. The first targeted indication is triple-negative breast cancer, by a vaccine candidate planned to enter clinical trials in 2024. The company has already obtained data in ovarian cancer, sarcoma and acute myeloid leukaemia. ErVimmune has completed a €4.5 million seed round with Seventure and Bpifrance in 2022 and is preparing a second round of financing.
ErVaccine Technologies rebrands as ErVimmune highlighting discovery and R&D pipeline, including next generation cancer vaccines and TCR-T cell therapies.
www.ervimmune.com
About Servier in Oncology
Servier is a global leader in oncology focused on delivering meaningful therapeutic progress for the patients it serves. Governed by a non-profit foundation, Servier approaches innovation with a long-term vision, free of influence from investors and outside pressure to chase short-term monetary targets.
As a leader in oncology, Servier has significantly accelerated its investment in difficult and hard-to-treat cancers, with more than 50% of its research and development dedicated to delivering significant advances in areas of high unmet need throughout oncology with the potential to change the lives of the patients it serves. Within these areas, Servier is the leader in mutant IDH inhibition, with the first ever mutant IDH inhibitor approved in the U.S. and the European Union, and the company continues to drive the science behind targeted mutant IDH inhibition throughout its pipeline.
Servier’s commitment to therapeutic progress guides its collaboration strategy. While many companies across the industry are scaling back investments, Servier is actively building alliances, completing acquisitions, conducting licensing deals and entering new partnerships that can help to accelerate access to therapies for
patients in need. With the company’s commercial expertise, global reach, scientific expertise and commitment to clinical excellence, Servier is dedicated to bringing the promise of tomorrow to the patients it serves.
Contacts:
SCHLEMM Kelly; kelly.schlemm@servier.com
Nathalie Donne ; nathalie.donne@ervaccinetechnologies.com
