HOOKIPA’s Gilead Sciences Collaboration for HIV and HBV Therapeutic Vaccines Advancing Towards Clinical Entry

NEW YORK and VIENNA, Austria, Jan. 06, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- HOOKIPA Pharma Inc. (NASDAQ: HOOK, ‘HOOKIPA’), a company developing a new class of immunotherapeutics targeting infectious diseases and cancers based on its proprietary arenavirus platform, today announced that HOOKIPA has made strong progress in its collaboration with Gilead for novel arenavirus-based therapeutics intended to support functional cures for chronic Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections.

HOOKIPA and Gilead Sciences designed and tested multiple arenaviral vectors expressing HIV and HBV immunogens, optimizing each for potential preclinical immunogenicity, safety and manufacturability. In 2019, HOOKIPA earned multiple Gilead milestone payments for the delivery of research vectors and advancing the programs closer to clinical studies. On the basis of promising preclinical data, Gilead has committed to preparations to advance the HBV and HIV vectors toward development, with the HBV development decision triggering an additional milestone payment to HOOKIPA. To enable the development activities and expanded research programs, Gilead has agreed to reserve manufacturing capacity and expanded the HOOKIPA resources allocated to the Gilead collaboration.

About HOOKIPA

HOOKIPA Pharma Inc. (NASDAQ: HOOK) is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing a new class of immunotherapeutics, targeting infectious diseases and cancers based on its proprietary arenavirus platform that is designed to reprogram the body’s immune system.

HOOKIPA’s proprietary arenavirus-based technologies, VaxWave^®*, a replication-deficient viral vector, and TheraT^®*, a replication-attenuated viral vector, are designed to induce robust antigen specific CD8⁺ T cells and pathogen-neutralizing antibodies. Both technologies are designed to allow for repeat administration to augment and refresh immune responses. TheraT^® has the potential to induce CD8⁺ T cell response levels previously not achieved by other immuno-therapy approaches. HOOKIPA’s “off-the-shelf” viral vectors target dendritic cells in vivo to activate the immune system.

HOOKIPA’s VaxWave^®-based prophylactic Cytomegalovirus vaccine candidate is currently in a Phase 2 clinical trial in patients awaiting kidney transplantation from living Cytomegalovirus-positive donors. To expand its infectious disease portfolio, HOOKIPA has entered into a collaboration and licensing agreement with Gilead Sciences, Inc. to jointly research and develop functional cures for HIV and Hepatitis B infections.

In addition, HOOKIPA is building a proprietary immuno-oncology pipeline by targeting virally mediated cancer antigens, self-antigens and next-generation antigens. The TheraT^® based lead oncology product candidates, HB-201 and HB-202, are in development for the treatment of Human Papilloma Virus16-positive cancers. The Phase 1/2 clinical trial for HB-201 was initiated in December 2019. The HB-202 IND filing is intended for the first half of 2020.

Find out more about HOOKIPA online at .

*Registered in Europe; Pending in the US.

HOOKIPA Forward Looking Statements

Certain statements set forth in this press release constitute “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. Forward-looking statements can be identified by terms such as “believes,” “expects,” “plans,” “potential,” “would” or similar expressions and the negative of those terms. Such forward-looking statements involve substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause HOOKIPA’s research and clinical development programs, future results, performance or achievements to differ significantly from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, among others, the uncertainties inherent in the drug development process, including HOOKIPA’s programs’ early stage of development, the process of designing and conducting preclinical and clinical trials, the regulatory approval processes, the timing of regulatory filings, the challenges associated with manufacturing drug products, HOOKIPA’s ability to successfully establish, protect and defend its intellectual property and other matters that could affect the sufficiency of existing cash to fund operations and HOOKIPA’s ability to achieve the milestones under the agreement with Gilead. HOOKIPA undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. For a further description of the risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those expressed in these forward-looking statements, as well as risks relating to the business of the company in general, see HOOKIPA’s quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2019 which is available on the Security and Exchange Commission’s website at  and HOOKIPA’s website at .

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