Results of previous study of vaccine for MS
see biz.yahoo.com
Company's BV6 TCR Peptide Vaccine Induces An Immune Response in 80% of Vaccinated MS Patients
CARLSBAD, Calif., April 30 /PRNewswire/ -- The Immune Response Corporation (Nasdaq: IMNR - news) announced the publication of data on their investigational T Cell Receptor (TCR) peptide vaccine for multiple sclerosis (MS) showing that it induced a specific response (stimulation index >5) in 80% of the patients treated. The objective of the Company's TCR vaccine program is to induce an immune response that inactivates the T cells thought to be pathogenic in MS. The article appears in the May issue of the Journal of Neuroscience Research. Eight of ten patients given five 300 microgram injections of the TCR peptides emulsified in Incomplete Freund's adjuvant (IFA) during the 48 week open label trial developed specific cell mediated responses as measured by both delayed-type hypersensitive (DTH) skin tests and lymphocyte proliferation assays (LPA). No responses against an irrelevant peptide were observed, and neurologic assessments, on average, remained stable during the trial.
``These data, from our Phase I MS trial completed in 1999, suggest that our BV6 peptide is highly immunogenic in MS patients, and justify its inclusion as part of a combination peptide vaccine in our future MS trials,'' said Richard M. Bartholomew, Ph.D., Executive Director of Research Operations for The Immune Response Corporation. ``Based on data from previous clinical trials and over 160 pathogenic T cell clones isolated from many different MS patients, we believe that if commercially approved our TCR therapeutic vaccine combining BV5, BV6 and BV13.1 could potentially be used to treat approximately 90% of the patients suffering from MS.''
Currently, the Company has a 60 patient Phase I/II TCR combination peptide vaccine study under way. The trial is being conducted at six centers located within the states of Washington and Oregon. The double blind, placebo-controlled trial will monitor safety, immunogenicity and clinical benefits. |
