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Biotech / Medical : progenics -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: keokalani'nui who wrote (65)	9/23/2002 10:08:29 AM
From: tuck	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 139

Progenics, which has been really brutalized in the absence of news lately, has a little good preclinical news that is also good for CYTO and ABGX: >>WASHINGTON, Sept. 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The PSMA Development Company LLC, a joint venture of Progenics Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: PGNX - News) and Cytogen Corporation (Nasdaq: CYTO - News), today announced encouraging preclinical results with its prostate cancer immunotherapeutic agent. The experimental drug is a human monoclonal antibody that targets prostate- specific membrane antigen (PSMA), a biological marker abundantly found on the surface of prostate cancer cells. In new laboratory studies, the monoclonal antibody killed PSMA-expressing cells, while sparing normal cells. The scientific findings were presented this past weekend at the Ninth Annual CaPCURE Scientific Retreat in Washington, DC. "This monoclonal antibody has demonstrated an impressive ability to selectively deliver a lethal payload to PSMA expressing tumor cells," said William C. Olson, Ph.D., Progenics' vice president of research and development. "Our next steps include selecting the optimal toxin and radioactive payloads in parallel with producing clinical-grade antibody." Fully human high-affinity monoclonal antibodies to PSMA were originally developed in a collaboration with Abgenix, Inc. (Nasdaq: ABGX - News), using Abgenix' XenoMouse® technology. To increase their killing capacity, Progenics and Cytogen linked the antibody to a toxin molecule or a radioactive isotope. In both cases, the modified antibodies not only retained the ability to efficiently bind to the cell surface of PSMA-expressing cells, but were also internalized, thereby directing its lethal payloads within individual malignant cells. The joint venture intends to file an Investigational New Drug application (IND) next year. "PSMA targeted therapies hold great promise for the treatment of prostate cancer, especially for patients in the advanced stages of the disease," said H. Joseph Reiser, Ph.D., president and CEO of Cytogen Corporation. "These early results indicate that the PSMA antibody has the potential to destroy prostate cancer cells without affecting normal cells in the body." In these and prior studies, the antibody has exhibited an encouraging set of therapeutic properties. The fully human monoclonal antibody reacts specifically with the three-dimensional structure of PSMA as it appears on the exterior of prostate cancer cells. It also retains the ability to bind to PSMA with high affinity when linked to toxins or radioisotopes. Very low concentrations of the toxin-linked antibody (LD50 = 10 picomolar) kill PSMA- expressing cells, but not normal cells, and antibodies linked to either toxin or radioisotopes were rapidly internalized by target cells. Human monoclonal antibodies are laboratory-produced "clones" of antibodies that are formed by the body in response to specific antigens or "foreign" invaders. Antigens are found on the surface of infectious agents, tumor cells, or foreign tissue cells. PSMA is a cell-surface protein that is abundantly expressed on prostate cancer cells at all stages of disease, including advanced or metastatic disease. The PSMA gene was first discovered by scientists at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and is exclusively licensed to Cytogen Corporation, which has sublicensed it to the PSMA Development Company for in vivo immunotherapy. PSMA is also present at high levels on the newly formed blood vessels (neovasculature) needed for the growth and survival of many types of solid tumors. If PSMA-targeted therapies can destroy or prevent formation of these new blood vessels, the therapies may prove valuable in treating a broad range of cancers. In addition to fully human monoclonal antibodies, the PSMA Development Company expects to initiate clinical studies of a therapeutic prostate cancer vaccine, pending acceptance of an investigational new drug (IND) application by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The vaccine is comprised of a recombinant PSMA protein and an immune stimulant or adjuvant.<< Cheers, Tuck