Ossianix Receives Grant from The Michael J. Fox Foundation to Advance TXP1 Brain Shuttle for Delivering TrkB Agonist Antibody in Parkinson’s Disease Therapy

Stevenage, UK – 9 January 2025 – Ossianix Inc., an antibody discovery and engineering company with a CNS focus, has been awarded a US$1.26 million grant by The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) to advance its innovative approach to Parkinson’s disease (PD) treatment. This funding will support Ossianix’s development of a brain-penetrant TrkB agonist antibody, which is a potent neuroprotection agent with the potential to modify disease progression in PD.

The project leverages Ossianix’s proprietary TXP1 Brain Shuttle technology to deliver a TrkB agonist antibody across the blood-brain barrier (BBB), a major obstacle for central nervous system (CNS) therapies. Through this approach, Ossianix aims to offer a novel therapeutic solution to PD patients by achieving efficient drug delivery to the brain, enabling neuroprotection with a potentially transformative impact on disease progression.

Ossianix’s TXP1 Brain Shuttle was developed through its innovative platform and validated in vivo for efficient delivery of a variety of therapeutic modalities across the BBB. Preliminary data for the TrkB agonist antibody-Brain Shuttle fusion suggest promising neuroprotective effects on dopaminergic neurons, which are critically impacted in PD. Ossianix aims to advance this program through pre-clinical development, with an ambitious goal to accelerate clinical translation and deliver a highly anticipated disease-modifying therapy to PD patients.

The MJFF grant was awarded through its “Parkinson’s Disease Therapeutics Pipeline Program,” which supports pre-clinical and clinical development of therapies addressing unmet needs for people with PD. This program prioritizes treatments with clear potential to prevent, stop, or delay disease progression or to reduce the burden of daily symptoms.

Frank S. Walsh, Chief Executive Officer of Ossianix, said: “We are delighted to be working with The Michael J. Fox Foundation whose goals we share of fostering innovative Parkinson’s disease research, enhancing understanding of the disease, and developing targeted therapies. Our approach using TrkB antibodies promises to be transformational as they exhibit profound neuroprotective effects in vivo.”

"The Michael J. Fox Foundation funds a diverse range of innovative approaches targeting validated pathways in PD, aiming to slow, stop or ultimately cure disease progression," said Jessica Tome Garcia, PhD, senior scientific portfolio manager, MJFF. “Supporting Ossianix's TrkB agonist antibody work is a meaningful step in advancing our understanding of this therapeutic approach for people with Parkinson’s disease.”