OREANDA-NEWS. Selecta (RUS), the Russian subsidiary of RUSNANO portfolio company Selecta Biosciences, Inc., announced the successful synthesis of its first batch of tSVP™ nanoparticles using the active component of Selecta’s proprietary nicotine vaccine. The Russian research team reproduced the technology of making tSVP™ nanoparticles after training in Selecta’s main R&D facility near Boston, Massachusetts. The particle size distribution of the batch, which is a critical parameter of nanoparticle medicines, was confirmed by light scattering techniques. Composition and stability of the nanoparticle batch will be analyzed in the company’s Russian laboratories located in the Moscow region. Immunological experiments in animals will also be performed to confirm the biological activity of the batch.

Alexey Nizovtsev, Chief, Laboratory of drug formulations, demonstrates a sample from the first nanoparticle batch for nicotine vaccine. The nanoparticle size distribution, measured with ZetaPals equipment, is displayed in the background.

The first synthesis of nanoparticles in Russia is an essential step in the transfer and development of Selecta’s unique Synthetic Vaccine Nanoparticle (SVP™) technology platform. “The Russian facility plays an essential role to speed up the development and commercialization of new vaccines for prevention and treatment of life threatening diseases. Our team will focus on smoking cessation, cancer and chronic infections. These are important diseases in Russia. We will develop product candidates for global markets while keeping the Russian patients in mind,” said Dmitry Ovchinnikov, Deputy General Manager at Selecta (RUS).

Selecta’s lead product candidate is SEL-068, a nicotine vaccine for smoking cessation and relapse prevention. A Phase 1 clinical trial was completed in Belgium in early 2013. The company is planning to conduct its next clinical trial in smokers in Russia.