Aravax establishes pharmaceutical development base on the Oxford Science Park
Melbourne, Australia and Oxford, UK, 14 November 2024: Aravax, a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing next-generation immunotherapies designed to be safe, convenient, and precisely targeted, today announces it has established a UK subsidiary, based on the Oxford Science Park, as the company continues its development into an international leader in food allergies.
The UK operations will drive the development of commercial manufacturing processes for the peptide drug substances underpinning Aravax’s advanced immunotherapies, as lead candidate PVX108 approaches Phase 3 development. Aravax anticipates investing around US$10m in manufacturing development over the next two years. The UK base also provides Aravax with a truly international footprint for business development. Aravax’s headquarters in Australia will retain its current responsibilities for clinical development and other activities.
Dr Paul Laidler, Vice President, Pharmaceutical Development, Aravax (UK), said:
Having operations in Oxford provides the opportunity to benefit from the best in UK and European manufacturing expertise for sterile, peptide-based products, and also from the wider worldwide life sciences ecosystem.
Dr Pascal Hickey, CEO of Aravax, said:
Our ambition is to become a global leader in food allergy therapeutics through the development of safe and convenient immunotherapies which meet the critical need for better treatments. We believe this requires an international mindset and capabilities and the setting up of our Oxford operations is a significant step in our development. The company has made great advances with its groundbreaking technology which has the potential to dramatically improve therapeutic options for patients living with food allergies.
Aravax raised US$42m in a series B financing earlier this year, to accelerate the development of PVX108, its lead candidate for the treatment of peanut allergy. Its Phase 2 clinical study in Australia and the USA is now fully recruited, with results expected in H1 2026.
