Tampere, Finland – Vactech Oy (Vactech), a biotechnology company focused on development of vaccines for Type 1 Diabetes and other immune mediated diseases, today announced that significant results on the risk association between coxsackieviruses and Type 1 Diabetes has been published in the scientific journal of the American Diabetes Association (Diabetes journal).

Publication: http://diabetes.diabetesjournals.org/content/63/2/446.long

Study setup

Enteroviruses are among the suspected environmental triggers of the disease, and the interest in exploring the possibilities to develop vaccines against these viruses has increased. The objective of the study was to identify enterovirus serotypes that could be involved in the initiation of the disease process by screening neutralizing antibodies against 41 different enterovirus types in a unique longitudinal sample series from a large prospective birth-cohort study. The study participants comprised 183 case children testing persistently positive for at least two diabetes-predictive autoantibodies and 366 autoantibody-negative matched control children.

Results

Coxsackievirus B1 was associated with an increased risk of β-cell autoimmunity. This risk was strongest when infection occurred a few months before autoantibodies appeared and was attenuated by the presence of maternal antibodies against the virus. Two other coxsackieviruses, B3 and B6, were associated with a reduced risk, with an interaction pattern, suggesting immunological cross-protection against coxsackievirus B1.

"This is the first systematic large-scale study which has been carried out to identify diabetogenic enterovirus types. The results fit very well with previous studies suggesting a special role of coxsackie B group enteroviruses. This information helps to make the vaccine effective against Type 1", said MD, Ph.D Heikki Hyöty, Chairman of the Vactech Board and Senior Adviser.

About Vactech

Vactech develops and licenses vaccines and novel technologies for vaccines and diagnostics with a pipeline of early stage product candidates focused on Type 1 Diabetes, Celiac Disease, Asthma & Allergy and diagnostics.

Vactech’s flagship project is a patented enterovirus based preventive Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) vaccine, similar to the widely used enterovirus vaccine against polio. The vaccine is a traditional inactivated vaccine and it has been proved to be safe and effective in mice. In addition, Vactech’s IMAVAC™ product line uses Virus Like Particle (VLP) technology which is essential for other vaccines, immunomodulators and diagnostic applications.

Vactech is a privately owned company. We have a track record of collaboration with big pharma on the level of Good Laboratory Practice (GLP). We consider ourselves as an attractive investment target for those that believe in and want to grow with our mission.

For more information contact:

Please see the company's website at www.vactech.fi for additional information or contact:

Raimo Harju, CEO

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