Weeks after reverse merger, Disc expands hematologic pipeline

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Weeks after reverse merger, Disc expands hematologic pipeline

Published: Jan 20, 2023

By Tristan Manalac

BioSpace

Massachusetts-based Disc Medicine inked an exclusive license agreement with Mabwell Therapeutics to gain access to its portfolio of monoclonal antibodies against the transmembrane serine protease 6 (TMPRSS6) protein.

Per the deal, announced Thursday, Disc will make an upfront cash payment of $10 million and pledge up to $402.5 million more in potential development and commercial milestone payments. Mabwell will also remain eligible for tiered mid- to high-single-digit royalties on net sales of any product due to the partnership.

In return, Disc will gain access to MWTX-003, Mabwell’s Phase I-ready investigational antibody designed to help control iron hemostasis. In an email to BioSpace, John Quisel, Ph.D., CEO of Disc, explained that MWTX-003 “controls iron levels through a hormone called hepcidin.”

Disc is preparing to launch a Phase I trial of MWTX-003 in healthy volunteers in the second half of 2023. The candidate will be exclusive to Disc in the U.S., Europe and other territories outside China.

Quisel also said the Mabwell deal supplements Disc’s “expertise in the role of iron homeostasis in hematologic disorders” by expanding the company’s portfolio “with these highly complementary antibody programs.”

The MWTX-003 program, in particular, “is in perfect alignment with [the company’s] strategy,” Quisel added, pointing out that Disc’s lead program, DISC-0974, “controls iron the other way.” That is, the candidate cuts hepcidin levels and increases iron.

Aside from MWTX-003, the licensing deal will give Disc exclusive rights to Mabwell’s other novel anti-TMPRSS6 antibodies. Genetic studies have shown that TMPRSS6 plays an essential role in the formation of red blood cells by controlling the amount of iron available. 

According to evidence from clinical and non-clinical studies, inhibiting the membrane-bound protein could have therapeutic potential in hematological diseases.

Gearing Up for A Busy Year

Thursday’s deal follows a year-end reverse merger deal for Disc, in which it combined with fellow Massachusetts biotech Gemini Therapeutics. 

Trading under the Nasdaq ticker IRON, the combined companies will focus on advancing Disc’s hematology-focused pipeline. This includes the oral investigational glycine transporter 1 inhibitor bitopertin, being trialed for erythropoietic protoporphyria in the ongoing Phase II BEACON and AURORA studies. Bitopertin is designed to modulate heme biosynthesis.

Disc is also running a Phase Ib/II trial for DISC-0974, which inhibits the hemojuvelin co-receptor, in turn lowering hepcidin levels in patients with myelofibrosis with anemia. DISC-0974 is also scheduled to enter another Phase Ib/II trial in non-dialysis-dependent patients with anemia of chronic kidney disease.

Top-line readouts are expected for these trials within the year, Quisel said.

Both bitopertin and DISC-0974 are also in pre-clinical assessments to identify additional indications. Disc has several other pre-clinical programs for hematologic diseases.

Source: BioSpace