Tuesday, February 3, 2009

ImmunoGen founder Blättler leads Alfama pre-clinical work

By Marc Songini

Cambridge-based biotech startup Alfama Inc. has made industry veteran Walter Blättler the new director of pre-clinical development.

Blättler is the scientific founder of ImmunoGen Inc. (Nasdaq: IMGN), a Waltham-based biopharmaceuticals firm. Blättler was the head of ImmunoGen’s research and development and clinical development efforts until 2007. In his new role, Blättler will be responsible for developing Alfama’s entire portfolio of drug candidates, the startup stated in a press release this past week.

Alfama, which originated in Portugal but has its headquarters in Cambridge, is developing new drugs that are based on carbon monoxide-releasing molecules (CORM). Carbon monoxide is a toxin, but it also occurs naturally in a body when it exhales during normal respiration. Fifteen years of research has shown its therapeutic potential when delivered to targeted tissues in the right doses, according to Alfama officials.

Alfama believes Blättler will be able to bring the CORM technologies successfully to clinical trials. For his part, Blättler stated he had been seeking to work on a project that involved a novel platform with strong therapeutic potential, and “with that elusive sense of something that is going to work.”

The Alfama portfolio includes several hundred proprietary compounds that are suitable for oral, intravenous, or topical delivery. Each method can deliver carbon monoxide at different rates, Alfama claimed. The company currently has as its priority the sponsorship of pre-clinical programs involving acute liver failure and multiple sclerosis. Last October, Alfama pulled in $14.7 million in private funds.