Targazyme and University of Minnesota Medical Center Initiate a Collaboration to Improve Regulatory T Cell Immunotherapy Outcomes for the Prevention and Treatment of Graft-Versus-Host-Disease

SAN DIEGO, CA--(Marketwired - November 12, 2015) - Targazyme, Inc. a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel enzyme technologies and products to improve clinical efficacy outcomes for stem cell transplantation and cancer immunotherapy, announced today that it has entered into a collaboration with the University of Minnesota Medical Center ("UMMC") to advance the development of the Company's clinical product candidate, TZ101 for use with regulatory T cells ("Tregs"). This collaboration builds on positive proof of concept data published in the journal "Blood" demonstrating that ex vivo treatment of Tregs with TZ101 prior to administration is an effective strategy for the prevention of Graft-Versus-Host-Disease ("GVHD"). This new UMMC collaboration will focus on improving understanding of the mechanisms involved with TZ101-treated Treg immunotherapy in the transplant and autoimmune disease settings.

GVHD can be a life-threatening complication of hematopoietic stem cell and solid organ transplantation that affects approximately 188,000 patients a year annually in the United States (source: Statista, 2015). Targazyme believes that TZ101 can potentially reduce patient morbidity and mortality from GVHD, which remains a difficult to treat complication in approximately 50% of patients, as well as its potential application in solid organ transplants.

"Preclinical studies published in the journal "Blood" have shown that TZ101-treated Tregs persist for a longer time in vivo and are able to prevent GVHD at a lower cell dose compared to untreated regulatory T cells," said Dr. Bruce Blazar, Co-Director of the University of Minnesota stem cell transplantation program. "We look forward to working with Targazyme on this important additional collaboration with the intention to further develop this important T cell-based cancer immunotherapeutic in the area of GVHD."

"These additional mechanistic-based studies with the UMMC will allow us to explore further the potential for broadening the application of TZ101 not only to potentially help patients undergoing stem cell and solid organ transplantation but also patients with life threatening auto-immune diseases," said Lynnet Koh, President and Chief Executive Officer of Targazyme. "TZ101, as well as our second product, TZ102, are enabling technologies for improving efficacy outcomes for various cells such as T cells, natural killer cells, hematopoietic stem cells and other cell types that are used to prevent and treat a variety of different diseases for which there is a high unmet medical need."

About Targazyme, Inc.

Targazyme Inc. is a San Diego-based, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel enzyme-based platform technologies and products to improve clinical efficacy outcomes for cell therapy, immunotherapies for autoimmune diseases and cancer, stem cell transplantation, gene therapy and regenerative medicine.

The Company's clinical-grade fucosyltransferase enzymes and small molecule products (TZ101 and TZ102) are off-the-shelf biologic products used at the point-of-care to treat therapeutic cells immediately before infusion into the patient using a simple procedure that is easily incorporated into existing medical practice. The Company has received worldwide patents, multiple FDA orphan drug designations, has an open investigational new drug application (IND) with multiple ongoing clinical studies and a Phase 3 Special Protocol Assessment (SPA) with the FDA, and numerous major medical/scientific awards and grants.

Targazyme has partnerships and collaborations with Kyowa Hakko Kirin and Florida Biologix, as well as various medical research institutions including the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Texas Transplant Institute, Case Western/University Hospitals, Scripps Hospitals, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, UCLA Medical Center, Stanford University Medical Center, University of Minnesota Medical Center, University of California San Diego, Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, Indiana University, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and New York Blood Center. Learn more at http://www.targazyme.com.