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Providence Therapeutics Announces Partnership with University Health Network (UHN) for mRNA Therapeutic Discovery and Development
CALGARY, Alberta, June 2, 2023 – Providence Therapeutics Holdings Inc. ("Providence"), a biopharmaceutical company developing messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines and therapeutics, today announced its mRNA drug discovery partnership with University Health Network (UHN), ranked first on a list of Canada's top 40 research hospitals by Research Infosource Inc. and within one of the world’s top 5 hospitals for the fourth year in a row, as reported by Newsweek. This collaboration will allow Providence and UHN to develop mRNA-based vaccines and therapeutics for those living with difficult to treat cancers and infectious diseases, using Providence’s proprietary mRNA platform technology.
“This partnership is unique in that it provides country-of-origin rights to Canada for all therapies developed under the agreement. As a parent of a child that survived a late-stage cancer diagnosis, I empathise with anyone that needs treatment that is available elsewhere in the world but is too expensive for our healthcare system in Canada,” said Brad Sorenson, MBA, chief executive officer of Providence Therapeutics. “UHN is world-class, and Providence has demonstrated its mRNA platform is on par with other major mRNA companies. This sets up Canada to be a leader in exporting life-saving therapies throughout the world while taking care of Canadians.”
Brad Wouters, Executive Vice President, Science and Research at the University Health Network added, “Our partnership with Providence demonstrates the strength of discovery research at the University Health Network and our potential to fuel innovative therapeutic options for patients. This partnership will help us get homegrown treatments to patients faster and is a key path forward for research discoveries to evolve into medical breakthroughs.”
Through this collaboration, UHN and Providence will be able to partner on cutting-edge discovery projects with breakthrough mRNA technology. The product development and subsequent manufacturing will be done in Canada, thereby directly benefiting Canadians.
Programs developed through the collaboration that receive funding from the Canadian government or not-for-profits will provide an option to the host government for 100% reimbursement to retain country specific rights to intellectual property.
About Providence Therapeutics
Providence is a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering mRNA therapeutics and vaccines with a focus on infectious diseases and oncology. Initially founded as a cancer vaccines company in 2015, in response to a worldwide need for a COVID-19 vaccine, Providence expanded its focus beyond oncology therapies to develop an mRNA vaccine for COVID-19. Providence works with multiple industry collaborators, universities, nongovernmental agencies and multiple arms of the Government of Canada to discover and develop vaccines and treatments for infectious diseases and cancer. This has resulted in the development of an mRNA vaccine platform that includes a proprietary design algorithm and proprietary, scalable manufacturing processes. For more information, please visit providencetherapeutics.com.
About University Health Network
University Health Network consists of Toronto General and Toronto Western Hospitals, the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, and The Michener Institute of Education at UHN. The scope of research and complexity of cases at University Health Network has made it a national and international source for discovery, education and patient care. It has the largest hospital-based research program in Canada, with major research in arthritis, cardiology, transplantation, neurosciences, oncology, surgical innovation, infectious diseases, genomic medicine and rehabilitation medicine. University Health Network is a research hospital affiliated with the University of Toronto. For more information, visit: www.uhn.ca.
About Commercialization at UHN
Enabling and leading industry partnerships at UHN, Commercialization at UHN is UHN’s catalyst for accelerating its world-class research and innovation into medical products, devices and therapies that improve care for patients around the world. This is how we create a healthier world. For more information, visit: www.uhncommercialization.ca.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws including regarding Providence's development plans, the initiation of phase 3 booster study, and the final analysis of the PRO-CL-002 Phase 2 study. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "may," "should," "could", "expects," "intends," "plans," "aims," "anticipates," "believes," "estimates," "predicts," "potential," "continue," or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. The forward-looking statements in this press release are neither promises nor guarantees, and you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements because they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are beyond Providence's control, and which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties, and other factors include, among others: that here are a limited number of commercial products utilizing mRNA technology approved for use; the fact that mRNA technology in use by Providence is still being developed and implemented; the fact that the long term safety and efficacy of PTX-COVID19-B has not yet been established; inability to recruit patients for the conduct of the phase 3 booster study; the observation of adverse safety issues; issues regarding the manufacture and supply of PTX-COVID19-B; our capacity to meet supply and demand for our products; market acceptance of PTX-COVID19-B; the continuation of our collaborations and other significant agreements with our existing commercial partners and third-party suppliers and our ability to establish and maintain additional collaboration agreements; our expectations regarding our financial performance, including revenues, expenses, gross margins, profitability, liquidity, capital expenditures and income taxes; our estimates regarding our capital requirements; our ability to meet anticipated timelines for the development of our products; and unforeseen regulatory delays. Except as required by law, Providence disclaims any intention or responsibility for updating or revising any forward-looking statements contained in this press release in the event of new information, future developments or otherwise. These forward-looking statements are based on Providence's current expectations and speak only as of the date hereof.
Investor Contact:
Judyanna Yu
Providence Therapeutics
587-430-3889