Padlock Therapeutics Named by FierceBiotech as a 2015 "Fierce 15" Biotech Company
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – September 30, 2015 – Padlock Therapeutics, a biotechnology company dedicated to creating new medicines for destructive autoimmune diseases, today announced that it has been named by FierceBiotech as a 2015 Fierce 15 company, designating it as one of the most promising private biotechnology companies in the industry. The Fierce 15 celebrates the spirit of being "fierce" – championing innovation and creativity, even in the face of intense competition.
"The entire Padlock team is honored to be among the impressive list of companies chosen by the editors of FierceBiotech to be part of the Fierce 15," said Michael Gilman, Ph.D., Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Padlock. "We try to embody the spirit of being 'fierce' every day in our drug discovery research, our business relationships, and in our efforts to develop treatments for those patients suffering from autoimmune diseases."
An internationally recognized daily report reaching a network of over 275,000 biotech and pharma industry professionals, FierceBiotech provides subscribers with an authoritative analysis of the day's top stories. Every year FierceBiotech evaluates hundreds of private companies from around the world for its annual Fierce 15 list, which is based on a variety of factors such as the strength of its technology, partnerships, venture backers and a competitive market position. This is FierceBiotech's thirteenth annual Fierce 15 selection. A complete list of "Fierce 15" companies can be found online at www.fiercebiotech.com/fierce15.
About PAD Enzymes and Autoimmune Disease
Padlock's founding hypothesis is that autoimmune disease can result from the aberrant production of neo-antigens, materials not normally expressed during homeostatic health and, as a consequence, recognized as foreign by the immune system. These antigens drive both the initiation and the subsequent development of disease by inducing maturation of the immune response. Once disease is established, antigen production fuels inflammatory cycles in affected organs and drives the formation and deposition of immune complexes, which account for much of the morbidity and mortality in patients with autoimmune disease. Therefore, in patients where the source of neo-antigen is known, extinguishing antigen production offers the potential to impact disease progression and intensity without affecting systemic immunity.
The protein-arginine deiminases (PADs) are a family of enzymes that post-translationally modify arginine side chains on proteins to the non-encoded amino acid citrulline. In some patients, these citrullinated proteins are immunogenic. Therefore, PAD enzymes may be responsible for producing the antigens that drive disease in these individuals. Inhibiting PADs in these patients may provide an innovative and orthogonal approach for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, multiple sclerosis, and other destructive autoimmune diseases.
About Padlock
Padlock Therapeutics is a private, Cambridge, Massachusetts-based biotechnology company dedicated to creating new medicines to treat destructive autoimmune diseases. The company leverages breakthrough science on the biochemistry of the protein-arginine deiminase (PAD) enzymes, the role of PADs in generating autoantigens, and the role of protein citrullination in disease to develop novel drugs targeting the PAD enzymes. Padlock was founded by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute in conjunction with Atlas Venture. Padlock's Series A investors include Atlas Venture, Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC, Inc., MS Ventures, and Index Ventures. For more information on Padlock, visit www.padlocktherapeutics.com.
About FierceBiotech
FierceBiotech is the biotech industry's daily monitor, an email newsletter and web resource providing the latest biotech news, articles, and resources related to clinical trials, drug discovery, FDA approval, FDA regulation, patent news, pharma news, biotech company news and more. More than 150,000 top biotech professionals rely on FierceBiotech for an insider briefing on the day's top stories. Signup is free at www.fiercebiotech.com/signup.
CONTACT:
Padlock Therapeutics
Samantha Truex, Chief Business Officer
978-381-9601
Maureen L. Suda (Media)
Suda Communications LLC
585-387-9248
Rebecca Friend
FierceBiotech
202-824-5050