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Biotech / Medical : Ligand (LGND) Breakout! -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Peter Silsbee who wrote (10687)	11/3/1997 1:28:00 PM
From: Henry Niman	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 32384

PLS, It sounds like the agreements with MRK and BMY are for programs that are at an early stage. The goals of the programs are similar tp LGND's, but the means differ. Karo uses a "ration drug design" approach, like AGPH used to identify its protease inhibitor for HIV. Karo uses the crystalographic structure of the receptor to design small molecules. However, the sitaution is rather complex, because the receptors interact with a variety of proteins and the interacting proteins are different in different cell types (which is why they are call Tissue Selective Estrogens, or Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulators). LGND's approach uses a panel of receptors for rapid screening and drug companies can cheaply make 100's of thousands of compounds which are analogs of know hormones or ligands and of course LGND already has drugs (Droloxifene and CP-366,156) in clinical trials which were identified unnder a PFE alliance that began in 1991 (and they are working with LLY on Raloxifene, which is about to be approved, as well as AHP (with a counpound that should enter the clinic within the next 15 months according to the Oppenheimer presentation).