Peanut allergy treatment gets a $15 million boost

Life sciences and technology venture capital firm OneVentures will lead a $15 million funding round for a promising new treatment for peanut allergy in children, developed at the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute (MCRI). Unlike other treatments in development, the therapy will allow children with peanut allergy to incorporate peanut products into their diet.

The novel action, discovered and developed by MCRI’s Professor Mimi Tang, is in the combination of peanut allergen together with a specific probiotic, Lactobacillus rhamnosus. It was tested in MCRI clinical trials starting in January 2015, which saw 62 peanut-allergic children given either the probiotic-peanut combination or a placebo over 18 months.

At the end of the study, 82% of children who received the probiotic-peanut therapy were able to tolerate up to 16 peanuts after the treatment had finished, compared with 4% of children who received a placebo. A further multicentre study is underway, across three Australian sites, to see if the therapy can produce a longer term tolerance of up to 12 weeks.

“Based on the results we have seen to date, if nine children were given probiotic and peanut therapy, seven would benefit,” said Professor Tang. “This is a very promising result, and we look forward to seeing further evidence from the current trial and progressing the development of this approach so that all children with peanut allergy can access this treatment.”

OneVentures will now invest $8 million in Probiotic Therapies for Allergy (ProTA), the company established to commercialise the technology in peanut allergy, and explore other indications, with the approach holding the potential to treat allergies to milk, egg, shellfish and other nuts. The treatment is already attracting the attention of global pharmaceutical companies, and late-stage negotiations are underway to secure an additional $7 million from strategic investors and partners of OneVentures.

“OneVentures will play an active role in bringing ProTA’s treatment to market and assist with the management of clinical development and navigating the regulatory pathway, and bringing international partners to the table, as it has done with previous investments,” said Dr Paul Kelly, managing partner of OneVentures.