The story of CTLA4-Ig is a fascinating one. A young, bright
biochemist friend of mine gave me a copy of a book that
details the CTLA4-Ig saga in a narrative fashion.
Forever Young: Science and the Search for Immortality by Jim Schnabel
Bloomsbury - œ16.99 - ISBN 0747537046 (Nov 98)
Transplant immunology and GVHD, and the historical aspects
are described. It was Craig Thompson at Howard Hughes Institute in Michigan that first suggested to Linsley that
he make the CTLA4-Ig protein and, about a year after the two
Science papers in 1992, Thompson, Linsley and Lenschow first
used CTLA4-Ig to prevent transplant rejection (and to prevent autoimmune diseases). BMS,in 1989 after getting Oncogen in 1986 (BM) got Linsley and Ledbetter and shut off access to CTLA4-Ig.
Lenschow and Bluestone at UofChicago, Thompson at Howard Hughes, and June at NMRI were denied access.
Repligen made its own CTLA4-Ig, different from the BMS, and Thompson, with Repligen filed suit against BMS contesting
that the patent was invalid. BMS did some trials with patients with psoriasis then shut down BMS lab in Seattle in
1997.
I'm glad to see RGEN get the Tolerance-Bluestone patent rights. That locks down the GVHD stuff and others. For
an interesting narrative, I can suggest the above book. |
