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28 Apr
2019

Pharma start-up joins with Singapore technology agency in venture fund

Aptorum Group, a drug developer listed on Nasdaq, will invest in health care start-ups in Singapore, working alongside the city state’s government technology agency to channel US$90 million into promising companies. Aptorum and Aeneas Capital, both controlled by boutique investment bank co-founder Ian Huen Chung-yuen, signed an agreement with A*ccelerate Technologies on Wednesday to invest the funds over the next five years. A*ccelerate operates under the Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research, and is tasked with helping to commercialise ideas and intellectual capital into marketable products and services. The pact would allow Aptorum and Aeneas to leverage financial and technology development resources regionally and expand beyond Hong Kong when it comes to development of its own drug candidates. “Hong Kong’s relatively small population means the number of patients for clinical trials is quite limited and trials need to be conducted elsewhere,” said Huen, Aptorum’s founder and chief executive. “Our collaboration with [the agency] ... will allow us to access and develop the excellent expertise and technological ecosystems in Singapore.” Huen declined to divulge each party’s capital contribution toward the US$90 million, which will be deployed to support up to 20 start-ups. Aptorum and the agency plan to cooperate in the application of solutions to enable more accurate 2D and 3D magnetic resonance imaging in the field of surgical robotics. Aptorum, set up in 2017 through licensing agreements with units of the University of Hong Kong, Chinese University of Hong Kong and Hong Kong Polytechnic University, has obtained rights to further develop and commercialise various drugs. These include drug candidates for influenza, MRSA – an antibiotics-resistant bacteria infection – and endometriosis, a painful disorder affecting women. Huen said it expects to begin phase one clinical trials on three drug candidates between next year and 2021, each trial costing around US$5 million. Having raised only US$12 million from its listing on Nasdaq in December, Huen said the company will need to raise additional funds over time. The company employs around 80 staff, and operates a research facility at Science Park in Pak Shek Kok in the New Territories. This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: HK drug firm looks to Singapore deals (Sources: https://www.scmp.com/business/money/markets-investing/article/3007884/hong-kong-pharma-start-joins-singapore-technology)

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26 Apr
2019

Aptorum Group establishes Smart Pharma to Focus on Computational Repurposed Drug Discovery for Orphan and unmet Diseases

Aptorum Group Limited (Nasdaq: APM) today announced the establishment of a new subsidiary group, Smart Pharma (“SmartP”), which operates its novel computational repurposed drug discovery, modeling and validation platform, together referred to as the “Smart-ACTTM” platform. Smart-ACTTM stands for Accelerated Commercialization of Therapeutics and encompasses state-of-the-art technology in systematic screening of existing approved drug molecules against selected therapeutic targets. Specifically, the Smart-ACTTM platform comprises of a network of modules and processes that simulate the effectiveness of drug molecules against diseases for outcome prediction and selection. The Smart-ACTTM platform will initially focus on the screening drug molecules for orphan diseases or unmet medical needs. To date, SmartP has, under the recently established Smart-ACTTM platform, successfully screened 1,615 compounds against 3 therapeutic target proteins which are related to poor prognosis of neuroblastoma (“NB”). NB is a type of cancer that forms in certain types of nerve tissue and most frequently in the adrenal glands as well as spine, chest, abdomen or neck. The preliminary results from the Smart-ACTTM platform have now identified a number of potential repurposed drug candidates that could show promise against such disease. SmartP will next move on to conduct further in vitro and in vivo validation of these candidates through collaboration with Aptorum Group Limited to assess and validate the candidates’ usage for such new indication. Drug repurposing typically involves the use of an approved drug or a drug under development for an indication than that for which it was originally developed. The safety profiles and CMC perspectives of these drug molecules are typically well-established and therefore drug repurposing represents a lower risk approach for drug discovery/development. One of the better-known examples of successful drug repurposing is thalidomide, which was originally developed to treat morning sickness but withdrawn from the market due to its birth defect side effects. Later, it was repurposed for the treatment of multiple myeloma. SmartP targets to discover up to 10 repurposed drug candidates per annum under the Smart-ACTTM platform, which will continue to develop and enrich its library of intellectual property for such discoveries. Further information on the Smart-ACTTM platform can be found on our website: http://www.smtph.com. Founder of Aptorum Group and Smart Pharma, Mr. Ian Huen, commented: “Our Smart-ACTTM platform is a novel tool that we believe completely transforms the drug repurposing and discovery industry which traditionally relied on scattered and serendipitous discoveries. Instead, our Smart-ACTTM platform is based on computerized processes to perform systematic screening and prediction of drug molecules to accelerate the commercialization of therapeutics, with initial focus on orphan diseases and unmet medical needs. Aptorum Group is very excited with the development of Smart Pharma, with whom it will be actively seeking collaboration and co-development opportunities with the wider industry.” About Aptorum Group Limited Aptorum Group Limited (Nasdaq: APM) is a pharmaceutical company dedicated to developing and commercializing a broad range of therapeutic and diagnostic technologies to tackle unmet medical needs. Aptorum Group is pursuing therapeutic and diagnostic projects in neurology, infectious diseases, gastroenterology, oncology and other disease areas as well as non-therapeutic areas such as surgical robotics and the operations of its medical clinic in Hong Kong, Talem Medical, with the initial focus on treatment of chronic diseases resulting from modern sedentary lifestyles and aging population. For more information about Aptorum Group Limited, please visit www.aptorumgroup.com. About Smart Pharma Smart Pharma’s holding company, SMTPH Limited, and its group companies are wholly-owned subsidiaries of Aptorum Group Limited, focuses on deploying its Smart-ACTTM platform to revolutionize pharmaceutical discovery and development. For more information about Smart Pharma, please visit www.smtph.com. Disclaimer and Forward-Looking Statements This press release includes statements concerning Aptorum Group Limited and its future expectations, plans and prospects that constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. For this purpose, any statements contained herein that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such as “may,” “should,” “expects,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “could,” “intends,” “target,” “projects,” “contemplates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “predicts,” “potential,” or “continue,” or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. Aptorum Group has based these forward-looking statements largely on its current expectations and projections about future events and trends that it believes may affect its business, financial condition and results of operations. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release and are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions including, without limitation, risks related to its announced management and organizational changes, the continued service and availability of key personnel, its ability to expand its product assortments by offering additional products for additional consumer segments, the company’s anticipated growth strategies, anticipated trends and challenges in its business, and its expectations regarding, and the stability of, its supply chain, and the risks more fully described in Aptorum Group’s Form 20-F and other filings that Aptorum Group may make with the SEC in the future. Aptorum Group assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this press release as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. (Source: https://markets.on.nytimes.com/research/stocks/news/press_release.asp?docTag=201904240430BIZWIRE_USPRX____BW5095&feedID=600&press_symbol=507158038)

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25 Apr
2019

A*Star unit in $122m deal to co-create deep-tech start-ups

The enterprise arm of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) has signed a US$90 million (S$122 million) agreement to co-create local deep-tech start-ups in healthcare and life sciences. The agreement between A*ccelerate Technologies, Nasdaq-listed pharmaceutical firm Aptorum Group and Hong Kong financial institution Aeneas Capital aims to create up to 20 deep-tech ventures in Singapore over the next five years. These start-ups will tap technologies co-developed by A*Star research institutes and Aptorum, and will get help with being connected to market partners and clients via Aptorum's global network. One area being explored is imaging solutions in surgical robotics. This would involve applying A*Star's capabilities in medical image analytics and augmented reality to real-time 2D and 3D magnetic resonance imaging surgical imaging solutions. A*ccelerate chief executive Philip Lim said: "This agreement is testament to the vibrancy of Singapore's biotech ecosystem, as well as the private sector's confidence in A*Star's capabilities in deep-tech and biomedical research." Mr Ian Huen, founder and chief executive officer of Aptorum and the founder of Aeneas Capital, believes the partnership will yield "strong venture businesses that will be eventually recognised worldwide". Separately, Aptorum and Aeneas Capital will launch a healthcare and life science strategic investment fund of up to US$200 million, which might invest in the local biotech ecosystem. The two parties will also make acquisitions in identified technologies and businesses globally. The agreement between A*ccelerate, Nasdaq-listed pharmaceutical firm Aptorum Group and Hong Kong financial institution Aeneas Capital aims to create up to 20 deep-tech ventures in Singapore over the next five years. These start-ups will tap technologies co-developed by A*Star research institutes and Aptorum, and will get help with being connected to market partners and clients via Aptorum's global network. (Source: https://www.straitstimes.com/business/invest/astar-unit-in-122m-deal-to-co-create-deep-tech-start-ups)

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