Phase 1 Clinical Trial Expected to Begin in First Half 2011 in Patients with Gastrointestinal Cancer
BETHESDA, MA, USA | October 11, 2010 | Micromet, Inc. (NASDAQ:MITI – News) today announced that its licensee for MT111, MedImmune, plans to initiate a Phase 1 trial in patients with advanced gastrointestinal cancers based on an investigational new drug (IND) application recently accepted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). MT111, also known as MEDI-565, is a BiTE® antibody designed to direct a patient’s T cells, the body’s most potent killer cells, against cancer cells that express carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA). CEA is a protein found on the surface of a number of gastrointestinal cancers, including colorectal, esophageal and gastric.
MedImmune is advancing the development of MT111/MEDI-565 under a collaboration agreement signed with Micromet in June 2003. Under the terms of the agreement, development and commercialization of MT111/MEDI-565 will be led by MedImmune in the U.S. and outside of Europe, and by Micromet in Europe. MedImmune’s submission of an IND for MT111/MEDI-565 triggered a milestone payment to Micromet. MedImmune anticipates initiating the Phase I trial in the first half of 2011.
“We are pleased to advance the development of this innovative oncology drug candidate,” said Bahija Jallal, Ph.D., executive vice president of research and development at MedImmune. “We are looking forward to learning more about the potential of this compound to improve the lives of patients with advanced gastrointestinal cancers.”
Preclinical studies have demonstrated potent activity of MT111/MEDI-565 against human cancer cell lines and inhibition of tumor growth in animal models.
“We are very pleased with the progress achieved under our collaboration with MedImmune and are excited to see the third BiTE antibody enter the clinic," said Christian Itin, Ph.D., Micromet’s President and Chief Executive Officer.
About BiTE Antibodies
BiTE® antibodies are designed to direct the body’s cytotoxic, or cell-destroying, T cells against tumor cells, and represent a new therapeutic approach to cancer therapy. Typically, antibodies cannot engage T cells because T cells lack the appropriate receptors for binding antibodies. BiTE antibodies have been shown to bind T cells to tumor cells, ultimately inducing a self-destruction process in the tumor cells referred to as apoptosis, or programmed cell death. In the presence of BiTE antibodies, T cells have been demonstrated to serially eliminate tumor cells, which explains the activity of BiTE antibodies at very low concentrations. Through the killing process, T cells start to proliferate, which leads to an increased number of T cells at the site of attack.
About Micromet, Inc.
Micromet, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of innovative antibody-based therapies for the treatment of cancer. Its product development pipeline includes novel antibodies generated with its proprietary BiTE® technology, as well as conventional monoclonal antibodies. The Company’s lead product candidate blinatumomab (MT103) is currently the subject of a pivotal trial in patients with minimal residual disease positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Micromet has collaborations with a number of leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, including Bayer Schering Pharma, Boehringer Ingelheim, MedImmune, Merck Serono, Nycomed and sanofi-aventis. Additional information can be found at www.micromet.com.
About MedImmune
MedImmune, the worldwide biologics unit for AstraZeneca PLC (LSE: AZN.L, NYSE: AZN), has approximately 3,500 employees worldwide and is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland. For more information, visit MedImmune’s website at http://www.medimmune.com/.
SOURCE: Micromet, Inc.
Post Views: 26
Phase 1 Clinical Trial Expected to Begin in First Half 2011 in Patients with Gastrointestinal Cancer
BETHESDA, MA, USA | October 11, 2010 | Micromet, Inc. (NASDAQ:MITI – News) today announced that its licensee for MT111, MedImmune, plans to initiate a Phase 1 trial in patients with advanced gastrointestinal cancers based on an investigational new drug (IND) application recently accepted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). MT111, also known as MEDI-565, is a BiTE® antibody designed to direct a patient’s T cells, the body’s most potent killer cells, against cancer cells that express carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA). CEA is a protein found on the surface of a number of gastrointestinal cancers, including colorectal, esophageal and gastric.
MedImmune is advancing the development of MT111/MEDI-565 under a collaboration agreement signed with Micromet in June 2003. Under the terms of the agreement, development and commercialization of MT111/MEDI-565 will be led by MedImmune in the U.S. and outside of Europe, and by Micromet in Europe. MedImmune’s submission of an IND for MT111/MEDI-565 triggered a milestone payment to Micromet. MedImmune anticipates initiating the Phase I trial in the first half of 2011.
“We are pleased to advance the development of this innovative oncology drug candidate,” said Bahija Jallal, Ph.D., executive vice president of research and development at MedImmune. “We are looking forward to learning more about the potential of this compound to improve the lives of patients with advanced gastrointestinal cancers.”
Preclinical studies have demonstrated potent activity of MT111/MEDI-565 against human cancer cell lines and inhibition of tumor growth in animal models.
“We are very pleased with the progress achieved under our collaboration with MedImmune and are excited to see the third BiTE antibody enter the clinic," said Christian Itin, Ph.D., Micromet’s President and Chief Executive Officer.
About BiTE Antibodies
BiTE® antibodies are designed to direct the body’s cytotoxic, or cell-destroying, T cells against tumor cells, and represent a new therapeutic approach to cancer therapy. Typically, antibodies cannot engage T cells because T cells lack the appropriate receptors for binding antibodies. BiTE antibodies have been shown to bind T cells to tumor cells, ultimately inducing a self-destruction process in the tumor cells referred to as apoptosis, or programmed cell death. In the presence of BiTE antibodies, T cells have been demonstrated to serially eliminate tumor cells, which explains the activity of BiTE antibodies at very low concentrations. Through the killing process, T cells start to proliferate, which leads to an increased number of T cells at the site of attack.
About Micromet, Inc.
Micromet, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of innovative antibody-based therapies for the treatment of cancer. Its product development pipeline includes novel antibodies generated with its proprietary BiTE® technology, as well as conventional monoclonal antibodies. The Company’s lead product candidate blinatumomab (MT103) is currently the subject of a pivotal trial in patients with minimal residual disease positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Micromet has collaborations with a number of leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, including Bayer Schering Pharma, Boehringer Ingelheim, MedImmune, Merck Serono, Nycomed and sanofi-aventis. Additional information can be found at www.micromet.com.
About MedImmune
MedImmune, the worldwide biologics unit for AstraZeneca PLC (LSE: AZN.L, NYSE: AZN), has approximately 3,500 employees worldwide and is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland. For more information, visit MedImmune’s website at http://www.medimmune.com/.
SOURCE: Micromet, Inc.
Post Views: 26
