Phylos Receives First U.S. Patent for Use of Its PROfusion(TM) Technology And a Method to Create Protein Arrays for High-Throughput Protein Profiling
LEXINGTON, Mass., May 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Phylos, Inc. today announced the issuance of its first U.S. patent, number 6,207,446, entitled, ``Selection of Proteins Using RNA-Protein Fusions''. The technology covered under this patent, which is licensed exclusively to Phylos from the Massachusetts General Hospital, forms the basis of the Phylos PROfusion(TM) technology, a novel in vitro combinatorial biology platform. The PROfusion(TM) platform is used by Phylos to select and evolve proteins, such as antibody mimics, that have high- affinity for specific protein targets.
The patent provides methods for the creation of protein arrays through a novel attachment chemistry that facilitates the uniform immobilization of proteins to solid surfaces. This novel method is made possible through the use of the Phylos PROfusion(TM) technology, which is a unique approach for the covalent linkage of a protein to its own genetic material (typically messenger RNA). The attachment chemistry permits the attachment of proteins to a solid surface by establishing a Watson-Crick interaction between the mRNA that is linked to the protein, and a complementary ``capture oligonucleotide'' sequence, that is attached to the solid surface at a discrete location.
``Using this approach we have been able to successfully demonstrate the feasibility of a self-assembling protein array,'' said Rick Wagner, Ph.D., Senior Vice President of Research at Phylos.
Phylos uses its PROfusion(TM) technology, together with a novel human protein scaffold, to produce large numbers of high-affinity, target-specific antibody mimics. The immediate focus of the Company is to use these antibody- mimics to assemble high-throughput protein profiling chips that will initially be used by research scientists to look for proteins, from biological samples such as tumor biopsies, that are elevated or depressed as a consequence of disease or drug administration. Particular proteins that are identified in this way may represent novel targets that can be used to develop new therapeutic drugs.
In the long-term, it is Phylos' belief that the antibody-mimics can be developed into a novel class of therapeutic proteins that will be a useful alternative to monoclonal antibody therapeutics.
For additional information, visit the Company's Internet web site at www.Phylos.com |
