The startup develops a therapeutic vaccine utilizing a melanin-based adjuvant for immunotherapy, targeting glioblastoma brain tumors and Covid-19. This vaccine technology can be integrated with immune checkpoint inhibitors to enhance treatment efficacy for cancer and infectious diseases.
Funding
$2.6M raised to dateRaised to date based on public sources. This may differ from the amount the company actually raised and is based only on what is publicly available on the internet.
Founders
Product
Problem
Glioblastoma, a highly aggressive brain cancer, has limited effective treatment options and a poor prognosis, with a survival rate of less than 5% within five years of diagnosis. Current glioblastoma therapies often lack specificity, leading to difficulty in controlling the treatment and causing significant side effects. The lack of specific immune response contributes to the onset and progression of the disease.
Solution
Altevax is developing a novel immunotherapy that uses melanin as an adjuvant, linked to a peptide specific to the targeted disease, to stimulate a strong, targeted immune response. This therapeutic vaccine technology enhances the body's natural defenses by triggering antigen-specific CD8+ and CD4+ T cell responses. By mimicking a physiological immune response, Altevax's approach aims to be specific, effective, and well-tolerated, offering a potential breakthrough in glioblastoma treatment. The company's technology allows for the rapid development of therapies against various diseases, leading to treatments that are easy to produce and administer. Altevax's immunotherapy is currently in Phase 1/2a clinical trials for glioblastoma.
Target Audience
The primary target audience includes patients with glioblastoma and other cancers, as well as medical professionals and researchers focused on developing innovative cancer immunotherapies.
Features
- Melanin-based adjuvant to stimulate a strong antigen-specific immune response
- Induces both CD8+ and CD4+ T-cell responses for enhanced immune system activation
- Works with a wide range of peptide lengths, allowing for optimization between reactivity, specificity, and manufacturability
- Designed to be complementary to other anti-cancer immune technologies, such as anti-PD1 therapies
- Aims for lower global costs in R&D and production compared to alternatives like autologous CAR-T therapies
- Phase 1/2a clinical trial in glioblastoma ongoing
- Exclusive worldwide licensee for the melanin technology patent