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Olives and Wine: Conagen Makes Accessible Antioxidant Hydroxytyrosol by Fermentation

Bedford, Mass., Sept. 10, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Leveraging its robust phenolics platform, Conagen announced the expansion of the health ingredient portfolio of its commercial partner Blue California, with the successful scale–up and commercialization of the powerful natural antioxidant ingredient hydroxytyrosol.

With its health–promoting properties, hydroxytyrosol is a phenylethanoid found in olives and wine. Most hydroxytyrosol is naturally found in the juice of olives, minorly in oil. Current hydroxytyrosol ingredients on the market are produced mainly through processed olive juice or are synthetic.

Conagen's high–purity hydroxytyrosol is virtually colorless and odorless, making it ideal for formulating different products. The hydroxytyrosol is produced by using a cost–effective, sustainable natural fermentation process that has led to the filing of several patent applications, making it a preferred option compared to its olive juice concentrate and synthetic counterparts.

"Hydroxytyrosol is derived from one of our four small–molecule platforms. The flexibility of our phenolics platform has enabled us to rapidly scale and commercialize hydroxytyrosol and other novel ingredients, highlighting our productive innovation engine and reliability as a strategic service partner," said Vice President of Innovation, Casey Lippmeier, Ph.D. at Conagen.

Hydroxytyrosol has received increasing attention in the dietary supplement world due to its potent antioxidant and anti–inflammatory properties that contribute to the many health benefits of consuming olives. Preclinical and clinical studies demonstrate the positive effects of hydroxytyrosol on heart health and support healthy cholesterol levels.

"The Mediterranean diet is consistently rated as one of the healthiest diets, partially attributed to the use of olives," Blue California's Research, Science and Innovation Officer, Linda May–Zhang, Ph.D. "Hydroxytyrosol is one of the most potent antioxidants in olives, and research suggests the great promise of this molecule in healthy aging and potential immune support applications."

In addition to immune health, emerging research suggests hydroxytyrosol supports heart health, metabolic health, bone health, brain health, and beauty.

Immune health will remain a top priority for consumers as 64% of global consumers are looking to improve their immunity over the next 12 months, reported by FMCG Gurus, Top Ten Trends for 2021, Dec. 2020.

"Conagen is unlocking unprecedented access to sustainable compounds which are only sparingly found in nature," said Lippmeier. "We expect this and other related compounds will prove useful as cost–effective food or cosmetic ingredients or as additives to other products in which oxidation must be mitigated."

Using precision fermentation, Conagen produces an extensive portfolio of ingredients, with a recent focus on phenolic antioxidants and natural preservatives such as Rosmarinic acid (Rosavel ), Capsaicin, and the recently announced p–Coumaric Acid (PCA). These ingredients add to a long list of health–promoting flavonoids such as Dihydroquercetin (DHQ), also known as Taxifolin.

Blue California is a provider of solutions and manufacturer/distributor of specialty ingredients, flavors, and fragrances and has a long–standing innovation partnership with Conagen. Conagen focuses on developing sustainable, nature–based ingredients that improve existing options in the market or represent completely novel ingredient solutions.

About Conagen

Conagen is a product–focused synthetic biology R&D company with large–scale manufacturing capabilities. Our scientists and engineers use the latest synthetic biology tools to develop high–quality, sustainable, nature–based products by precision fermentation and enzymatic bioconversion. We focus on the bioproduction of high–value ingredients for food, nutrition, flavors and fragrances, pharmaceutical, and renewable materials industries. www.conagen.com

About Blue California

Blue California is a vertically integrated technology company providing innovative ingredient solutions to global partners. With more than 20 years of innovation success, our ingredients are used in commercial products and applications in nutrition, personal care, healthy aging and wellness, functional food and beverage, and beauty. www.bluecal–ingredients.com

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Adagio Therapeutics Announces Expansion of Patient Population in Global Phase 2/3 Clinical Trial of ADG20 for the Prevention of COVID-19

WALTHAM, Mass., Sept. 10, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Adagio Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical–stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of antibody–based solutions for infectious diseases with pandemic potential, today announced that the independent data monitoring committee (IDMC) for the EVADE Phase 2/3 trial of ADG20 for the prevention of COVID–19 has provided a recommendation to expand Phase 3 trial enrollment to include adolescents and pregnant or nursing women, as well as to decrease the protocol–specified, post injection monitoring time. The IDMC's assessments are based on their review of unblinded safety and tolerability data from 200 participants enrolled in the Phase 2 lead–in portion of the trial. Adagio remains blinded to the data and plans to implement the IDMC recommendations for the Phase 3 portion of the trial. EVADE is being conducted globally, including in regions where there is a high prevalence of SARS–CoV–2 variants of concern, to evaluate the ability of a single, intramuscular dose of ADG20 to prevent COVID–19 in both pre– and post–exposure settings.

"Given the urgent need for additional treatment and preventative options for COVID–19, particularly in vulnerable populations, we are pleased that an independent assessment of the safety data from the lead–in portion of EVADE supported inclusion of adolescents and pregnant or nursing women in the next phase of the study," said Lynn Connolly, M.D., Ph.D., chief medical officer of Adagio. "Based on the potent and broad activity of ADG20 in non–clinical studies, as well as its extended half–life and ease of administration, we believe this antibody has the potential to become a preferred prophylactic option for COVID–19, particularly for vulnerable groups such as children and the immunocompromised, for whom there are currently limited or no available options."

The EVADE trial is a global, multi–center, double–blind, placebo–controlled clinical trial evaluating ADG20 in two independent cohorts. The first cohort (post–exposure prophylaxis) is designed to assess the safety and efficacy of ADG20 compared to placebo for the prevention of COVID–19 after exposure to an individual with laboratory confirmed SARS–CoV–2 infection. The second cohort (pre–exposure prophylaxis) is designed to assess the efficacy and safety of ADG20 compared to placebo in individuals who are at increased risk for SARS–CoV–2 infection due to occupational, housing or recreational situations, and in individuals who are at increased risk of poor vaccine response, including individuals with compromised immune systems or other co–morbidities. The primary efficacy endpoint in both cohorts is the prevention of laboratory confirmed, symptomatic COVID–19. For more information on the EVADE trial, please visit https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04859517.

The clinical development program for ADG20 includes two additional trials: the ongoing Phase 1 clinical trial of ADG20 in healthy volunteers and the ongoing STAMP trial evaluating ADG20 as a treatment for high–risk individuals with mild or moderate COVID–19 (see clinicaltrials.gov).

About ADG20
ADG20, a monoclonal antibody targeting the spike protein of SARS–CoV–2 and related coronaviruses, is being developed for the prevention and treatment of COVID–19, the disease caused by SARS–CoV–2. ADG20 was designed and engineered to possess high potency and broad neutralization against SARS–CoV–2 and additional clade 1 sarbecoviruses, by targeting a highly conserved epitope in the receptor binding domain. ADG20 displays potent neutralizing activity against the original SARS–CoV–2 strain as well as all known variants of concern. ADG20 has the potential to impact viral replication and subsequent disease through multiple mechanisms of action, including direct blocking of viral entry into the host cell (neutralization) and elimination of infected host cells through Fc–mediated innate immune effector activity. ADG20 is formulated at high concentrations, enabling intramuscular administration, and was engineered to have a long half–life, with a goal of providing both rapid and durable protection. Adagio is advancing ADG20 through multiple clinical trials on a global basis.

About Adagio Therapeutics
Adagio is a clinical–stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of antibody–based solutions for infectious diseases with pandemic potential. The company's portfolio of antibodies has been optimized using Adimab's industry–leading antibody engineering capabilities and is designed to provide patients and clinicians with a powerful combination of potency, breadth, durable protection (via half–life extension), manufacturability and affordability. Adagio's portfolio of SARS–CoV–2 antibodies includes multiple, non–competing broadly neutralizing antibodies with distinct binding epitopes, led by ADG20. Adagio has secured manufacturing capacity for the production of ADG20 with third–party contract manufacturers through the completion of clinical trials and, if approved by regulatory authorities, through initial commercial launch. For more information, please visit www.adagiotx.com.

Contacts:
Media Contact:
Dan Budwick, 1AB
Dan@1abmedia.com

Investor Contact:
Monique Allaire, THRUST Strategic Communications
monique@thrustsc.com


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