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Biotech / Medical : Immunomedics (IMMU) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: David M. Cleary who wrote (236)	4/24/1998 7:46:00 PM
From: jluker	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 371

MORRIS PLAINS, N.J., April 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Immunomedics, Inc. (Nasdaq: IMMU) today announced that its 46th and 47th U.S. patents have been awarded. The patents contain multiple claims to methods for detecting or treating cancers and infectious and cardiovascular lesions (clots, infarcts, atherosclerotic plaques) by delivering imaging or therapeutic agents with targeting antibodies, fragments, or peptides. In U.S. Patent 5,736,119, which issued April 7, 1998, the external imaging agents include either diagnostic isotopes or magnetic-resonance enhancers. The diagnostic isotopes can be used for external imaging and/or internal detection of diseased tissues during surgery, laparoscopy, endoscopic or intravascular procedures. The select targeting is accomplished with a "pre-targeting approach" involving a first step of localizing a biotin or avidin molecule to the diseased area, followed by the enhanced binding of the matched avidin or biotin, respectively, which bears the diagnostic or therapeutic agent. The patent claims an improvement in this method, which makes use of naturally occurring molecules to carry the diagnostic and therapeutic agents to the target site. The therapeutic can be an isotope or drug. In U.S. Patent 5,746,996, which will issue May 5, 1998, new methods for attaching technetium or rhenium isotopes to peptides are described. The technetium peptides are another class of diagnostic imaging agents, whereas the rhenium isotopes constitute potentially potent therapeutics. These are intended to target selectively to certain receptors on cancer cells, such as somatostatin and vasoactive intestinal peptide. Both receptors are the subject of intensive research by several companies and academic institutions. The patented invention solves a problem in labeling targeting peptides that either have no sulfur-containing groups to bind a diagnostic or therapeutic metal or, more difficult still, have sulfur atoms in a linkage that must be preserved for activity but would be broken in conventional labeling methods. The new method uses a cleverly designed "masked" sulfur group that is unmasked after attachment to the target molecule. The Company's Chairman, Dr. David M. Goldenberg, commented: "These two patents are among a series that are being issued in the U.S. and, eventually, elsewhere in the world, that expand our core technology and product base. We have been developing a few of these proprietary products, while certain aspects of the technologies are being offered to other companies for licensing."