Immutep granted Japanese patent for IMP761, a first-in-class immunosuppressive antibody targeting LAG-3

Immutep granted Japanese patent for IMP761, a first-in-class immunosuppressive antibody targeting LAG-3

Sydney, Australia, July 6, 2022 – Immutep Limited (ASX: IMM; NASDAQ: IMMP) ("Immutep” or “the Company”), a biotechnology company developing novel immunotherapy treatments for cancer and autoimmune diseases, is pleased to announce the grant of a new patent (number 7074341) entitled “Anti- LAG-3 Antibodies” by the Japanese Patent Office.

This new Japanese patent follows the grant of the equivalent European patent announced in October 2020. The claims of the patent are directed to Immutep’s pre-clinical product candidate IMP761, pharmaceutical compositions comprising IMP761, and the use of the compositions in the treatment of T-cell mediated inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. The expiry date of the patent is 1 September 2036.

Immutep CEO, Marc Voigt stated: “We continue to take important steps to protect our pre-clinical candidate IMP761, which is the first product candidate to act as a LAG-3 agonist, a novel mechanism of drug action that we believe can act directly to treat the root cause of autoimmune diseases. Of course, the LAG-3 immune control mechanism has attracted a great deal of attention in recent months because of the approval by the FDA of the first LAG-3 related product in immuno-oncology. With deep expertise in LAG-3 biology, four LAG- 3 product candidates in development, and a comprehensive patent estate, Immutep is well placed to make important contributions to this rapidly emerging field of immunotherapy - in both cancer and autoimmune diseases.”

Immutep CSO and CMO, Dr. Frederic Triebel also stated: “We have been making good progress in advancing IMP761 towards clinical testing and, in recent months, have been working closely with Northway Biotech to develop a GMP compliant manufacturing process using the cell line developed by Batavia BioSciences. It is also good to see continued progress in building our patent estate around this innovative LAG-3 candidate.”