The Immutep Ltd (ASX: IMM) share price is climbing today after the biotechnology company announced it has secured a new patent.
At the time of writing, Immutep shares are edging 1.7% higher to 59.5 cents. In the last month, its shares have risen around 7%.
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Immutep furthers patent protection
Investors are pushing the Immutep share price higher after digesting the company's positive update.
Immutep has been granted another patent for its lead product candidate eftilagimod alpha to add to its growing portfolio, the company advised. Approved by the Chinese Patent Office, the latest addition will seek to further protect Immutep's intellectual property.
It comes after the company previously secured corresponding European, Australian, Japanese, and United States patents.
The new patent is titled, 'Use of recombinant LAG-3 or the derivatives thereof for eliciting a monocyte immune response'.
Efti is Immutep's lead immunotherapy candidate which is a soluble LAG-3 protein and a pd-1 pathway inhibitor. LAG-3 is an inhibitory co-receptor that plays a vital role in the treatment of cancer and autoimmune diseases.
The new patent is solely owned by Immutep and licensed exclusively to Chinese biopharmaceutical company, EOC Pharma. The patent is set to expire on 3 October 2028.
Based in Shanghai, China, EOC Pharma focuses on manufacturing and commercialising oncology products in China.
Management commentary
Speaking on the news possibly pushing the Immutep share price higher, CEO Marc Voigt said:
We are making good progress building our global patent estate around our LAG-3 development pipeline, including lead candidate efti which has delivered promising clinical data in various settings.
We will continue to make these important investments and are especially pleased to be working so closely with our Chinese partner, EOC Pharma, as they expand their clinical development of efti for the Chinese market.
EOC Pharma CEO Xiaoming Zou added:
We are investing in the development of efti for the local market in China and are very pleased with the steps being taken by our partner, Immutep, to build a broad portfolio of patent families around this unique candidate. These are important and ongoing steps in the complex process of bringing innovative medicines to the market for patients.
Immutep share price summary
The Immutep share price has jumped by more than 120% over the past 12 months. Year-to-date has also been sound, with shareholders recording gains of above 40%.
Based on today's price, Immutep has a market capitalisation of roughly $500 million.
