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First Plant-based Production of PAT-SM6

On April 2, 2014 Patrys reported that data on the production of PAT-SM6 in an easy-to-grow plant manufacturing system have been published in the leading peer-reviewed journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) (Press release Patrys, APR 2, 2014, View Source [SID:1234500550]). The article titled "Expression and glycoengineering of functionally active hetero-multimeric IgM in plants" is currently available online ahead of a future print edition of the journal.
The study was the result of a research collaboration involving Patrys and the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria. The collaboration has focused on developing an alternative production system for the manufacture of IgM antibodies (using PAT-SM6) which might significantly reduce production costs while maintaining the quality and functionality of the antibody products.
The study found that relatively high quantities of PAT-SM6 IgM antibody can be made in an easy-to-grow plant manufacturing system. Further, functionality of antibodies very often depends on the attached sugars. It was shown that by modulating the properties of the plants, a process called in planta glycoengineering, this plant expression system can produce fully functional antibodies that are similar to the antibodies generated by the human body. The study demonstrated this novel plant-based process can be successfully applied to generate high yield, functional, human-like IgM antibodies.

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AbCheck to Discover Antibodies for Pierre Fabre

On April 2, 2014 it was announced that AbCheck is now in a research collaboration with Pierre Fabre under which AbCheck will use its AbSieve discovery platform to deliver antibodies against targets provided by Pierre Fabre (External Source, Pierre Fabre, APR 2, 2014, View Source [SID:1234500363]). Pierre Fabre will have full rights to any antibodies selected and will make milestone payments and fees for discovery to AbCheck.
AbCheck says its AbSieve discovery platform combines its phage and yeast display technologies to develop antibodies in formats including full length IgGs as well as customer-specific and novel antibody formats. Its phage display libraries, according to the firm, allow for the discovery of specific high-affinity human antibodies for target proteins; the yeast display technology allows the selection of drug candidates with high affinities and improved drugability from a range of variants.
Previously this year, Pierre Fabre has entered two other cancer related agreements with Redx Pharma and Aurigene, respectively.

Update on phase III clinical trial of investigational MAGE-A3 antigen-specific cancer immunotherapeutic in non-small cell lung cancer

On April 2, 2014 GlaxoSmithKline announced its decision to stop the MAGRIT trial (NCT00480025), a Phase III trial of its MAGE-A3 cancer immunotherapeutic in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients, after establishing that it will not be possible to identify a sub-population of gene-signature positive NSCLC patients that may benefit from the treatment (Press release GlaxoSmithKline, APR 2, 2014, View Source [SID:1234500361]).
Data from the trial announced on 20 March 2014 showed that it did not meet its first or second co-primary endpoints as it did not significantly extend disease-free survival (DFSiv) when compared to placebo in either the overall MAGE-A3 positive population (first co-primary endpoint) or in those MAGE-A3-positive patients who did not receive chemotherapy (second co-primary endpoint).
GSK continued with the MAGRIT trial to investigate the third co-primary endpoint of DFS in a gene signature positive sub-population, which was designed to identify a subset of MAGE-A3 positive patients that may benefit from the treatment. However, the pre-planned independent third-party analysis of a proportion of the data (to identify a gene signature classifier) has concluded that assessment of the third co-primary endpoint is not feasible due to an insufficient treatment effect.
The trial will be stopped and GSK will now gain access to the un-blinded data, in order to conduct a full assessment of the findings and understand learnings for other aspects of immunotherapy development within GSK.
The Independent Data Monitoring Committee (IDMC) indicated that its review of the current safety information revealed no specific safety concern and the data is in line with the known safety information for the MAGE-A3 cancer immunotherapeutic.
MAGRIT, a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, evaluated the efficacy and safety of the MAGE-A3 cancer immunotherapeutic in Stage IB, II and IIIA completely resected non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients whose tumours expressed the MAGE-A3 gene.

Novel Pharmacodynamic Assays to Measure Glutaminase Inhibition Following Oral Administration of CB-839 (Parlati, et al.)

On April 1, 2014 Calithera Biosciences presented the corporate presentation (Presentation, Calithera Biosciences, APR 1, 2014, View Source [SID1234535308]).

NEOMED includes a new drug discovery project in its pipeline

On April 1, 2014 NEOMED, an organization whose mission is to create a bridge between academic research and the pharmaceutical industry, reported the launch of a new oncology drug discovery project (Press release, NEOMED, APR 1, 2014, View Source [SID1234527383]). The project, from a US company Epigenetix Inc. (Florida), has been selected by NEOMED to develop novel inhibitors of Brd4, a protein that functions as an epigenetic modulator and whose potential in the treatment of cancer is being explored. The initial stages of drug discovery will involve IntelliSynRD, a Montreal-based medicinal chemistry company located in the NEOMED Institute.

"This is a very important project for NEOMED which we will undertake in collaboration with our partners. We aim to deliver a candidate drug within the next six to eight months. We are confident that we can achieve this together thanks to our team of scientists and the support of our network at the NEOMED Institute, and elsewhere in Canada." said Dr. Max Fehlmann, President and Chief Executive Officer of NEOMED and the NEOMED Institute.

"We are very pleased to have the support of an organization such as NEOMED to advance the development of new inhibitors of Brd4 and confirm the importance of epigenetics in the treatment of various forms of cancer. NEOMED’s expertise and its network will quickly move this project forward. The fact that our preferred provider of medicinal chemistry, IntelliSynRD, is part of the NEOMED Institute is an important advantage for the success of the project," said Joe Collard, President and Chief Executive Officer of Epigenetix Inc.

The most recent discoveries have shown that changes in the spatial shape of DNA can be as important as those in its sequence to explain the causes of certain diseases, in particular cancers. Although the DNA sequence cannot be easily modified, the spatial form of the DNA molecule is controlled by a family of enzymes that can be targeted with new classes of drugs. The ambition of epigenetics approaches is to restore the normal functions, especially in cancer cells.