Acquired technology is designed to discover reactivators of the tumor suppressor p53.
Abraxis BioScience acquired exclusive worldwide property rights from the Buck Institute for Age Research for technologies designed to generate novel therapeutics and identify new drug discovery targets. Included in the licensed technologies are a novel immunotherapeutic/anticancer compound (T9) and cell-based assay systems for the discovery of additional immune-modulating drugs.
T9 is a bi-functional molecule with the ability to kill cancer cells and to activate the immune response to recognize cancer cells in a manner analogous to childhood vaccination, report the firms.
The assay platforms are designed to discover new chemical entities that remediate the signaling activities of the tumor suppressor p53 in p53-dysfunctional cancer cells. According to the companies, the technologies have made the discovery of reactivators of appropriate p53 signaling behavior possible. Inherent in the design is a strategy to develop therapeutics that selectively stimulate programmed cell death in p53-dysfunctional cancer cells and that would leave healthy cells expressing normal p53 unaffected.
Abraxis will in-license all leading drug candidates discovered by Buck using these technologies, including the nab candidate compound G6.
“These proprietary cell-based assay systems are a natural fit for our proprietary nab™ (nanoparticle albumin bound) technology platform and our proprietary natural product and synthetic drug discovery efforts,” said Patrick Soon-Shiong, M.D., chairman and CEO of Abraxis.
