On August 8, 2004 The Institute of Cancer Research and Cancer Research Technology Limited (CRT), the technology transfer company of the charity Cancer Research UK, reported the availability of free licences of European patents on the hereditary breast cancer gene BRCA2 to publicly funded research laboratories and not-for-profit research laboratories(Press release, Cancer Research Technology, AUG 11, 2004, View Source [SID1234523448]).

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The patents are based on the pioneering work of Professor Mike Stratton undertaken at The Institute of Cancer Research and funded by CRT’s parent charity, Cancer Research UK.

Further instructions for obtaining the licence can be found in the Downloads section of CRT’s website: commercial.cancerresearchuk.org/pages/about_download.html.

On July 20, 2004 Cancer Research Technology (CRT) reported that it has entered into a license agreement granting Genentech, Inc. (NYSE: DNA) exclusive worldwide rights to its patent portfolio covering an oncology target discovered in the Molecular Oncology Laboratory (Oxford) of Cancer Research UK(Press release, Cancer Research Technology, JUL 20, 2004, View Source [SID1234523449]). This oncology target was validated through collaboration between Cancer Research UK and CRT’s Development Laboratory. Genentech plans to evaluate the potential of protein therapeutics directed to this target.

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Harpal Kumar, CEO of CRT, commented, "CRT is delighted to have completed its first licensing partnership with Genentech for a therapeutic target. This partnership further exemplifies CRT’s role in bringing benefit to cancer patients by facilitating the development of early-stage opportunities and forming partnerships between cancer researchers and industry to accelerate the development of new therapies. We believe that Genentech is the ideal partner to accelerate this therapeutic opportunity towards the clinic.

On June 28, 2004 KuDOS Pharmaceuticals Limited, a leading private oncology company,reported to has signed agreements with The University of Cambridge and Cancer Research Technology Limited (CRT), the technology transfer company of the charity Cancer Research UK, to ensure continued access to the technology generated in Professor Stephen Jackson’s laboratory at the Wellcome Trust/Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute of Cancer and Developmental Biology at the University of Cambridge(Press release, Cancer Research Technology, JUN 28, 2004, View Source [SID1234523450]). The agreements enable KuDOS continued access to Professor Jackson’s innovative research into DNA repair.

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KuDOS is currently developing potent and highly selective small molecule therapies that block DNA repair in cancer cells, making tumours more vulnerable to the fatal DNA-disrupting effects of both radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Such small molecules promise a significant breakthrough in cancer management, particularly in therapy-resistant tumours, which commonly occur and contribute significantly towards poor prognosis.

Recent developments have greatly improved the understanding of the mechanisms used by cells to identify and repair breaks in DNA, and the potential for drugs that target DNA repair in the treatment of a range of human diseases including cancer.

Professor Jackson is the Frederick James Quick Professor of Biology at the Wellcome Trust/Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute of Cancer and Developmental Biology. He is also the founder and Chief Scientific Officer at KuDOS Pharmaceuticals.

Professor Jackson, said: "We are delighted to continue the commercial relationship between the University of Cambridge, CRT and KuDOS. These agreements will facilitate further research into this new and exciting area, and could have a significant impact on the treatment of cancer."

"Cancer Research UK have for some time supported the high quality research carried out in Prof Jackson’s laboratory and CRT was instrumental in the formation of KuDOS, which has rapidly translated this basic science into potential new medicines. These agreements are an extension of the mutually beneficial relationship all three parties continue to enjoy," said Dr Keith Blundy, Chief Operating Officer of CRT.

Dr David Secher, Director of Research Services at the University of Cambridge, said: "These two agreements between the University of Cambridge/CRT and KuDOS Pharmaceuticals will provide the opportunity to further develop Professor Jackson’s substantial research into therapies that can help with cancer treatment and management. Cambridge Enterprise was pleased to negotiate the agreements on behalf of the University and wishes KuDOS further success."

On June 12, 2004 Sareum Holdings plc (AIM: SAR), the structure-based drug discovery and services business, is pleased to report it has entered into a collaborative agreement with Cancer Research Technology Limited (CRT), the oncology focused technology transfer and development company (Press release, Cancer Research Technology, JUN 12, 2004, View Source [SID1234523442]).

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Under the terms of the agreement, which is on a fee-for-service basis and is for 6 months’ duration, Sareum will provide computational chemistry expertise to support several of CRT’s therapeutic discovery programmes in cancer. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Commenting on the announcement, Sareum’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr Tim Mitchell, said: "We are delighted that we have been chosen by Cancer Research Technology to provide these drug discovery services and we look forward to making a valuable contribution to their development programmes."

Commenting on the announcement, CRT’s Head of Medicinal Chemistry, Dr Tony Raynham, said: "Importantly, Sareum’s core capabilities in computational chemistry will support CRT’s medicinal chemistry department in the development of drug candidates arising from the research activities of our parent charity Cancer Research UK and our other prestigious international partners."

On May 25, 2004 Scancell Ltd, the Nottingham, UK based cancer therapeutics company, has reported that it has secured an agreement with Cancer Research Technology Limited (CRT) under which Scancell has been granted an exclusive worldwide licence to develop and commercialise two cancer vaccines against Tie-2 and CD55 protein targets for the treatment of solid tumours (Press release, Cancer Research Technology, MAY 25, 2004, View Source [SID1234523451]).

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Tie-2 and CD55 offer highly promising approaches to the development of novel vaccines using Scancell’s ImmunoBody technology. Tie-2 is over-expressed on tumour vasculature. Therapeutic vaccines targeting blood vessels can cause vascular collapse and starvation of large tumour areas. CD55 is over-expressed by tumours to protect them from immune attack. A therapeutic vaccine targeting CD55 may therefore destroy tumour cells over-expressing CD55 leaving any remaining cells susceptible to immune clearance through endogenous complement lysis. A combination of both vaccines may lead to dramatic tumour regression by harnessing the body’s immune system to ‘reject’ the tumour.

Commenting on the agreement, Professor Lindy Durrant, CSO of Scancell, said: "We are very pleased that CRT has selected Scancell to develop and commercialise these extremely promising products. This agreement offers Scancell the opportunity to develop two new ImmunoBody vaccines for the treatment of solid tumours. The collaboration with CRT is a further example of how we intend to accelerate the development of the ImmunoBody programme through partnerships over the next few years."

Dr. Keith Blundy, Chief Operating Officer at CRT, said: "Scancell is well positioned to develop the CD55 and Tie-2 vaccines and we anticipate that this deal will enable cancer patients to benefit from this exciting technology in the future."

Scancell’s ImmunoBody approach involves engineering a human antibody to express epitopes from tumour antigens over-expressed by commercially important solid tumours – in this case Tie-2 and CD55. ImmunoBody vaccines efficiently target the dendritic cells in vivo to stimulate effective immunity. They offer the potential to develop more effective vaccines against both cancer and infectious diseases.