1stOncology™: Cancer Intelligence Service – Page 16428 – 1stOncology is recognized as a Top 10 Global Pharma Analytic Provider

(Press release, Horizon Discovery, JAN 7, 2014, View Source,%20collaboration%20and%20license%20agreement%20with%20astrazeneca [SID:1234505071])

Schedule your 30 min Free 1stOncology Demo!
Discover why more than 1,500 members use 1stOncology™ to excel in:

Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing

Schedule Your 30 min Free Demo!

Sutro Biopharma to Collaborate With Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center to Produce Bispecific Antibodies for the Treatment of Neuroblastoma

On January 7, 2014 Sutro Biopharma reported that it has entered into a collaboration agreement with Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center to use Sutro’s proprietary cell-free protein synthesis technology to produce bispecific antibodies that were discovered by Memorial Sloan-Kettering for the treatment of neuroblastoma in children (Press release Sutro Biopharma, JAN 7, 2014, View Source [SID:1234500756]).

"Neuroblastoma is the most common extra-cranial solid tumor in children, and long-term survival for children with advanced disease diagnosed after 18 months of age is unsatisfactory despite aggressive chemotherapy," said Trevor Hallam, Ph.D., chief scientific officer of Sutro. "Sutro’s technology allows the generation, and importantly, the rapid screening of a large number of variations of bispecific antibodies. This will enable us to take bispecific antibodies with the desired characteristics faster into the clinic and potentially provide pediatric neuroblastoma patients with a much needed effective treatment option to combat this disease."

Under the collaborative agreement Sutro will use its cell free protein synthesis technology to produce four different bispecific antibodies discovered by Memorial Sloan-Kettering. These antibodies will be directed against CD3 on T-cells and, as the second target, against the ganglioside GD2, which is expressed on the surface of human neuroblastoma cells, as well as in melanoma and osteosarcoma. Nai-Kong V. Cheung, M.D., Ph.D., head of Memorial Sloan-Kettering’s Neuroblastoma program, will use preclinical models to test the bispecific antibodies manufactured by Sutro.

Dr. Cheung added, "We and others have previously shown that the use of an anti-CD3 and anti-GD2 bispecific antibody has a strong scientific rationale, and anti-GD2 monoclonal antibodies targeting the ganglioside GD2 have demonstrated efficacy in clinical trials in pediatric neuroblastoma. We hope that the use of Sutro’s technology will facilitate a more rapid, high-throughput optimization of these bispecific antibodies in the future, and allow us to investigate novel variants of these molecules quickly before bringing the winner to the clinic."

Eleison Announces Achievement of Enrollment Milestone in its Phase II Trial of ILC for Pediatric Bone Cancer

On January 3, 2014 Eleison Pharmaceuticals LLC, a specialty pharmaceutical company developing life-saving therapeutics for rare cancers, reported that it has passed the half-way point for enrollment in the first stage of its ongoing Phase II study of ILC (Inhaled Lipid-complexed Cisplatin), for the treatment of patients with pediatric osteosarcoma (bone cancer) (Press release, Eleison Pharmaceuticals, JAN 3, 2014, View Source [SID1234517400]). The single-arm trial employs a Simon two-stage design and is evaluating the safety and efficacy of ILC. Currently, eight centers in the U.S. are open for patient enrollment, and additional sites are expected to open in the coming weeks. More information about the study may be found at the www.clinicaltrials.gov website.
"Osteosarcoma often spreads to the lungs, which unfortunately is difficult to treat and has a poor prognosis," commented Dr. Forrest Anthony, CMO of Eleison Pharmaceuticals. "ILC has been designed to treat patients with lung metastases, and thus the ongoing Phase II study is enrolling patients who have recently experienced a first or second pulmonary recurrence," indicated Dr. Anthony.
About

(Press release, Advanced Vaccine Therapeutics, JAN 2, 2014, View Source [SID:1234505756])

BeiGene begins patient enrollment in phase I study of BGB-283

On December 23, 2013 BeiGene reported that it has enrolled first patient in a phase I study of BGB-283 in patients with B-RAF or K-RAS mutations. BGB-283 is an investigational, oral, selective, potent second generation inhibitor of B-RAF, making it a targeted therapeutic candidate to potentially treat and bring benefit to patients with cancers that harbour BRAF mutations and/or aberrations in the RAS-MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase) pathway (Press release BeiGene, DEC 23, 2013, View Source [SID:1234500417]).
BGB-283 is part of BeiGene’s two-asset strategic collaboration with Merck. Established earlier this year, the goal of the partnership is to leverage Merck’s global oncology development and commercialization expertise. The phase I multi-centre, open-label, dose escalation clinical trial of BGB-283 is designed to assess the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetic properties of BGB-283 as a single agent. The study is expected to only enroll subjects who have B-RAF or K-RAS mutations. Key objectives in the study include determining maximum tolerated dose, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and preliminary anti-tumour activity of BGB-283. Disease-specific expansion cohorts will be enrolled at the maximally tolerated or biologically relevant dose.
The mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway comprises several key signalling components that play critical roles in tumourigenesis. Alteration of the RAS-MAPK pathway has frequently been reported in human cancer as a result of abnormal activation of receptor tyrosine kinases or gain-of-function mutations mainly in the RAS or RAF genes. Activating mutations of the RAS family genes (H-RAS, K-RAS, and N-RAS) comprise up to 30 per cent of all human cancers. B-RAF mutations also have been reported in seven to eight per cent of all human cancers. Accordingly, components of this pathway are important therapeutic targets for cancer treatment.