Bridge Medicines Adds Small Molecule Inhibitors of Activated Factor XII to Pipeline

NEW YORK, Sept. 21, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Bridge Medicines and The Rockefeller University today announced an exclusive license agreement to further develop a series of small molecule inhibitors of activated Factor XII (FXIIa) discovered in the laboratory of Jan L. Breslow, M.D.

Breslow and his colleague Manish Ponda, M.D., illuminated a novel role for FXIIa as a key target for hereditary angioedema (HAE), a disease characterized by repeated episodes of swelling, and immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMID), such as rheumatoid arthritis.  With funding from The Rockefeller University and the Robertson Foundation, Drs. Breslow and Ponda subsequently identified a number of inhibitors of FXIIa. Breslow is Frederick Henry Leonhardt Professor and head of the Laboratory of Biochemical Genetics and Metabolism at Rockefeller. Ponda was an Assistant Professor of Clinical Investigation at Rockefeller and is currently the Director of Clinical Development at a major pharmaceutical company.

"Our results indicate that inhibitors of FXIIa may show utility against HAE and potentially a variety of other inflammatory disorders," Dr. Breslow said. "The possibility of developing new treatments to address such unmet medical needs continues to motivate our research efforts."

The agreement with The Rockefeller University allows Bridge Medicines to extend these early research efforts and provides a path to create an innovative series of new medicines. The Bridge Medicines operating model seamlessly moves promising early-stage research projects emerging from premier academic institutions from preclinical proof-of-concept to clinical development.

"We are thrilled to be working with Dr. Breslow on this highly innovative, and therapeutically promising project," stated Dr. William Polvino, CEO of Bridge Medicines.  "Drs. Breslow and Ponda have already shown that the lead compounds are efficacious in disease models of immune mediated inflammatory disorders. We see this as an exciting opportunity to revolutionize treatment for these disorders with a new medicine."

About Bridge Medicines
Bridge Medicines is a pioneering drug-discovery company focused on advancing promising early technologies in major academic institutions from proof-of-concept to clinical development. Launched by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, The Rockefeller University, Weill Cornell Medicine, and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited, in partnership with Deerfield Management Company and Bay City Capital, Bridge Medicines is a groundbreaking initiative that provides an unbroken, fully funded and professionally staffed path from discovery to drug candidate.  For more information about Bridge Medicines, please visit www.BridgeMedicines.com.

Contact:
Matt Stroschein
Jacob S. Lasdon House, 5^th Floor
420 East 70th Street
New York, NY 10021
[email protected]

SOURCE Bridge Medicines