CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Biotechnology innovator SIWA Therapeutics announced that it has successfully humanized its SIWA 318 monoclonal antibody, a significant milestone in the race to treat cancer and numerous other diseases by removing senescent cells, which become increasingly problematic as humans age.

Senescent cells lose their ability to divide or replicate for a variety of reasons and also secrete chemicals which interfere with the normal functions of other cells as well as contribute to inflammation. When too many senescent cells accumulate, they can cause or exacerbate a variety of age-related and degenerative diseases including arthritis, ALS, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, heart disease and cancer.

In previous research in mice, SIWA 318 has targeted and successfully removed senescent cells, and it also increased muscle mass. Other testing showed that mice treated with SIWA 318 had fewer metastatic lung cancer occurrences as well as possible suppression of tumor growth. No adverse effects were observed from the antibody treatment in either study.

Leading the Race with New Funding and Planned IND Submission

The humanized form of SIWA 318 has demonstrated strong and significant binding to senescent cells in preclinical studies, critical to accurately targeting and removing them. SIWA Therapeutics just completed a new round of funding and is planning to submit an IND to the FDA, with the ultimate goal of conducting the first human clinical trials for senescent cell removal. Based on initial results, the primary focus likely will be pancreatic cancer metastasis.

“With SIWA 318 now available in humanized form, we have moved closer to determining if removing senescent cells could become a common therapeutic approach in the fight against metastatic cancers,” said Lewis Gruber, co-founder and chief executive officer of SIWA Therapeutics. “Based on data that we and others in the scientific community have generated over the last few years, evidence is clearly mounting that many diseases, including cancer metastasis, will be treatable through senescent cell removal.”

Gruber recently presented at a workshop on “Update: Removing Senescent Cells as an Anti-Aging Strategy” at the second annual conference on Healthspan Extension Policy and Regulation, sponsored by the Center for Law, Science & Innovation at Arizona State University’s Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law.

ABOUT SIWA Therapeutics

SIWA Therapeutics is a privately held biotechnology company based in Chicago. SIWA has shown that its monoclonal antibody, SIWA 318, targets and destroys senescent cells in animal models without observable side effects of treatment. Although senescent cells are causally implicated in a wide variety of diseases including neurodegenerative diseases, autoimmune conditions, and infectious diseases, the company’s current therapeutic focus is on cancer metastasis. SIWA is seeking partnerships for diagnostic, separatory, and other uses to broaden and accelerate its development pipeline. www.siwatherapeutics.com

Forward Looking Statements

Certain information contained in this press release represents or is based upon forward -looking statements or information. Forward-looking statements and information can be identified by the use of terms such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “project,” “estimate,” “continue” or “believe” or the negative thereof or other variations or comparable terminology. Such forward-looking statements include statements regarding SIWA’s expectations concerning, among other things the ability to advance into clinical trials. Various factors may cause differences between SIWA's expectations and actual results. Any forward-looking statements that are made in this press release speak only as of the date of this press release and SIWA assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date of this press release.