Recent Developments in Microbiome Therapeutics Recent-Developments-in-Microbiome-Therapeutics-Nov | Page 11

for treating Clostridium difficile infections to its product portfolio. CP101 is currently undergoing a multicenter,
double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 2 clinical trial 47 .
Second Genome 48 is a clinical stage company, currently focusing on developing its lead candidate SGM-1019, for the
treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). SG-1019 is a small molecule inhibitor of a key microbiome-mediated
target that addresses pain and inflammation in IBD. It has successfully completed Phase 1 clinical trials. In April
2016, Second Genome received $42.6 million in Series B financing from Roche Venture Fund and Pfizer Venture
Investments, raising its total funding to nearly $63 million.
A low-profile company in this domain is NuBiyota 49 . In April 2017, Takeda struck a deal 50 to access NuBiyota’s
microbiome platform based on a cocktail of bacteria for gastro-intestinal infections. With this strategic collaboration,
NuBiyota received an upfront payment of an undisclosed amount and will receive success-based payments based
on development, regulatory and commercial milestones, as well as royalties based on net sales.
In September 2017, a group of Ghent University researchers published results from an in vitro study 51 on the effects
of butyrate-producing bacteria on patients affected by Crohn’s Disease. The study showed that supplementing with
butyrate-producing bacteria strengthened the epithelial barrier function and increased butyrate production.
The French company, Enterome Bioscience 52 , is one of the bigger players in the domain. The company has a
diverse microbiome therapeutics portfolio including Crohn’s Disease, IBD, Immuno-oncology and Autoimmune
diseases. The company also develops diagnostic tools for IBD and immuno-oncology. In January 2016, Enterome
announced a strategic drug discovery collaboration with Takeda, and a collaborative research agreement with
INRA 53 and Janssen Biotech (a Johnson & Johnson company), to develop new therapeutics for IBD and Crohn’s
Disease. In October 2017, the company completed Phase 1 clinical trials for its lead candidate, EB8018, a molecule
designed to block FimH, a bacterial adhesin, for the treatment of Crohn’s disease. Phase 2 for the drug is expected
to start in 2018. EB8018 was in-licensed from Vertex Pharmaceuticals in April 2016. Enterome has raised a total
of approx. $34 million via three rounds of funding.
47 https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03110133
48  http://www.secondgenome.com/
49 
https://www.nubiyota.com/
50  https://www.takeda.com/newsroom/newsreleases/2017/takeda-enters-into-strategic-collaboration-with-nubiyota-for-
microbiome-therapeutics/
51 Geirnaert, A. et al (2017), Butyrate-producing bacteria supplemented in vitro to Crohn’s disease patient microbiota increased
butyrate production and enhanced intestinal epithelial barrier integrity. Scientific Reports 7, Article Number: 11450. doi:
10.1038/s41598-017-11734-8
52 
http://www.enterome.fr/site/
53 INRA: French National Institute for Agriculture Research
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Recent Developments in Microbiome Therapeutics