Vaxxinity Presents Preclinical Data on Tau Vaccine Candidates

Vaxxinity, Inc. recently presented new preclinical data on vaccine candidates targeting aberrant forms of the Tau protein for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) during a poster session at the 2022 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC).

Tau is an intracellular protein known to misfold and accumulate in neurons in the form of neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) in the brain of AD patients. The formation of NFTs correlates with the progression of AD symptoms and may even develop prior to the first symptoms of the disease. Thus, targeting pathological Tau before the onset of AD symptoms, such as memory decline, could help prevent disease and/or progression.

“Our findings show that specific forms of Tau can be targeted by vaccines with subsequent functional impact,” said Justin Boyd, PhD, Director of Translational Science at Vaxxinity. “This preclinical research complements UB-311, our amyloid beta-targeting investigational vaccine which has been granted Fast Track designation by the FDA and is in clinical development for Alzheimer’s disease. Vaccines are uniquely suited to deliver multiple antigens in a single formulation, and thus rather than rely on selecting just one epitope, targeting multiple Tau epitopes may provide a more efficient way of neutralizing all toxic Tau species within one program. We look forward to the continued evaluation of these candidates as potential innovative solutions for patients who have been without options for far too long.”

Vaxxinity’s proprietary synthetic peptide-based technology platform enables both the targeting of endogenous proteins like Tau, and the combination of multiple epitopes/targets within a single formulation, a unique property that may prove critical in the prevention and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases where multiple pathologies may underlie disease progression. Preclinical data demonstrate that our Tau peptide lead vaccines are highly immunogenic and induce antibodies that display diverse binding profiles against different forms of Tau peptides (eg, monomeric Tau, preformed Tau fibrils, or Tau extracted from AD brain homogenates). Binding specificities of antibodies against diverse Tau species were confirmed by ELISA, dot blot, and Bio-Layer Interferometry analyses. Furthermore, using cell-based models, we show that the antibodies induced by our lead vaccines prevent intracellular aggregation of Tau and that this effect reflects a blockade of Tau uptake into cells rather than a direct blockade of Tau aggregation per se.

The poster, Characterization of Tau vaccines identifies diverse antibody binding and efficacy profiles, can be found on the Events & Presentations page of the company’s website. The poster presentation video is viewable on the AAIC conference website to registrants through Sept. 2, 2022 and will be available on the Vaxxinity website after Sept. 3, 2022.

Vaxxinity, Inc. is a purpose-driven biotechnology company committed to democratizing healthcare across the globe. The company is pioneering a new class of synthetic, peptide-based immunotherapeutic vaccines aimed at disrupting the existing treatment paradigm for chronic disease, increasingly dominated by monoclonal antibodies, which suffer from prohibitive costs and cumbersome administration. The company’s proprietary technology platform has enabled the innovation of novel pipeline candidates designed to bring the efficiency of vaccines to the treatment of chronic diseases, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, migraine, and hypercholesterolemia. The technology is also implemented as part of a COVID-19 vaccine program. Vaxxinity has optimized its pipeline to achieve a potentially historic, global impact on human health. For more information, visit http://www.vaxxinity.com.