Glialogix, a San Francisco Bay Area-based emerging biopharma company, has entered into a sponsored research agreement with Fast Forward, a nonprofit organization established by the New York-based National Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society to accelerate the development of treatments for MS. Fast Forward will provide funding for preclinical studies of GLX1112, a first-in-class neuroprotective therapy designed to slow the accumulation of disability in progressive MS.

“The treatment of patients with progressive MS represents a significant unmet medical need. The majority of MS disability occurs in the progressive forms of MS, but drugs that are effective for relapsing MS have shown limited to no efficacy in progressive MS,” said Mark Moore, Ph.D., CEO of Glialogix. “The research funding from Fast Forward validates our therapeutic approach for GLX1112 and will help us advance this investigational drug as a potential breakthrough therapy for the treatment of patients with progressive MS.”

The research to be funded by Fast Forward will include advanced pharmacokinetic testing, preclinical models and further mechanistic studies of GLX1112.

“A unique aspect of our program is that the active pharmaceutical ingredient in GLX1112 already has demonstrated a promising efficacy signal in progressive MS patients,” said Thadd Reeder, Ph.D., chief scientific officer of Glialogix and lead investigator of the GLX1112 preclinical research. “The support of Fast Forward will enable us to build on that signal by moving GLX1112 closer to clinical trials and may contribute to the development of new clinical trial designs in progressive MS.”

“The National MS Society is committed to identifying and helping develop new therapies for people living with multiple sclerosis,” said Bruce Bebo, Ph.D., executive vice president, research at the National MS Society. “Glialogix has an innovative therapeutic approach built on promising clinical data.”