Dow and Avidex to develop biotargeted radiopharmaceuticals
UK-based biopharmaceutical company Avidex and The Dow Chemical Company are to collaborate to create biotargeted radiopharmaceuticals for cancer treatment by applying Dow's technology to Avidex's monoclonal T cell receptors (mTCRs).
UK-based biopharmaceutical company Avidex and The Dow Chemical Company are to collaborate to create biotargeted radiopharmaceuticals for cancer treatment by applying Dow's technology to Avidex's monoclonal T cell receptors (mTCRs).
Under the agreement, proprietary chelation technology and other capabilities, provided through ChelaMed radiopharmaceutical services from Dow, will be used to attach a therapeutic radioisotope to a targeted mTCR. The first effort will focus on Avidex's mTCR product, EsoDex, to further enhance the targeted radiopharmaceutical for treatment of lung and bladder cancer. EsoDex targets the NY-ESO antigen, a very specific marker of cancer cells.
Although NY-ESO is a very specific tumour-associated antigen, it is an internal antigen, and therefore would not be detected by a therapeutic monoclonal antibody. EsoDex, however, is designed specifically to bind the fragments of the NY-ESO antigen that are presented on the surface of tumour cells by HLA class I molecules. Using the Dow chelator to attach a radionuclide (such as yttrium-90 or lutetium-177) as a payload to the NY-ESO-specific mTCR will enable targeted delivery of such cytotoxic agents.
'We are excited about using Dow's capabilities in chelation, conjugation, process and radiochemistry to enable Avidex to develop novel radiopharmaceuticals," said Dr Mark Cassidy, Dow's director, pharmaceutical technologies. 'Biotargeted radiopharmaceuticals can potentially increase therapeutic options, raise effectiveness and reduce side effects to improve quality of life for patients with cancer and other diseases.'
The agreement provides for additional future application of technologies and capabilities from ChelaMed radiopharmaceutical services to other cancer-specific mTCRs being developed by Avidex.
Dow added ChelaMed radiopharmaceutical services to its portfolio in June 2003. This service offering includes technology and capabilities to enable biopharmaceutical companies to transform their breakthrough targeting molecules into biotargeted radiopharmaceuticals, with integrated development capabilities from benchtop through manufacturing. While the launch of ChelaMed services represents Dow's first broad introduction of radiopharmaceutical services, the company has been working in this field for several years.