Bold Therapeutics Seeks Collaborators for Rapid Development of BOLD-100; Lead Drug Candidate Has Potential Utility in the Treatment of COVID-19

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 27, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Bold Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel anti-cancer therapies, announced that recent developments have suggested the potential utility of its lead drug BOLD-100 as a novel antiviral agent. BOLD-100's main mechanism of action is to inhibit stress-induced upregulation of GRP78. GRP78 is a common receptor for viral recognition of host cells and the recent publication by Ibrahim et al. entitled "COVID-19 spike-host cell receptor GRP78 binding prediction" on March 10, 2020 in the Journal of Infection identified GRP78 as a potential binding site for COVID-19. Other published literature has suggested that inhibiting or blocking GPR78 can reduce viral loads or viral replication in Ebola, Japanese Encephalitis Virus and Dengue Virus. 

BOLD-100 is a first-in-class anti-resistance ruthenium-based small molecule drug which selectively inhibits stress-induced upregulation of GRP78. Bold Therapeutics is focused on development of BOLD-100 in combination with FOLFOX and other anti-cancer agents for the treatment of various gastrointestinal cancers, including gastric, pancreatic, colorectal and bile duct (cholangiocarcinoma) cancers. A previously completed Phase 1 monotherapy study of BOLD-100 in advanced cancers showed that BOLD-100 was generally well-tolerated, with minimal side effects. Bold Therapeutics currently has ample cGMP clinical product available and an open IND / CTA in the U.S. and Canada, respectively, allowing for potentially rapid clinical development.

Bold Therapeutics' clinical and scientific capability has been built to address drug resistance in cancer. It has not prioritized interventions for COVID-19. Recognizing the current global humanitarian need, Bold is urgently seeking expressions of interest from collaborators who have the capability and resources to enable rapid advancement of BOLD-100 in the treatment of COVID-19.

For more information, please visit the COVID-19 section on Company's website at www.bold-therapeutics.com/COVID-19.

Contact:

E. Russell McAllister, CEO
(604) 262-9899
[email protected]

SOURCE Bold Therapeutics Inc.