Symphogen pioneers recombinant, human, polyclonal antibodies
In the early years of immunology research, well before the advent of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), polyclonal antibodies were the norm, if not the only way to develop novel therapies for immune disorders. The pioneers of monoclonal antibodies César Milstein working with Georges Köhler in Cambridge, UK developed the hybridoma technique for production of mAbs in 1975.
While antibody engineering based around mAbs has undoubtedly revolutionized immunology research into marker identification and in distinguishing between different cell types, which led eventually to their commercialisation as modern protein biopharmaceuticals, there are potential limitations to the use of a one-club approach.
A therapeutic mAb can be produced repeatedly and consistently. However, the product may not hit its target in the body outside its precisely defined antigenic region or epitope. The solution, according to Symphogen, based in Denmark, is a novel proprietary technology for the expression of antibodies that facilitates the production of 'symphobodies' or recombinant, human, polyclonal antibodies.
Describing Symplex™, Symphogen's technology platform, Paul Rohricht (pictured), Symphogen's Vice President of Business Development explained to Advances in Life Science at BIO-Europe 2005 in Dresden that his company had ongoing developments in four broad therapeutic areas of unmet medical need.
In August 2005, Symphogen acquired from Cambridge Antibody Technology (CAT) a licence to use CAT's antibody phage display patents for research and to develop and commercialise a number of therapeutic and diagnostic antibody products.
Symphogen has already exercised its first product licence option to develop and commercialize its lead product Sym001 a recombinant, fully human, anti Rhesus D polyclonal antibody, which Symphogen is developing for Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP) and Hemolytic Disease of Newborns (HDN). The Company aims to file an IND for initiation of phase I clinical trials in 2006.
Keywords : Symphogen Copenhagen Denmark Recombinant human polyclonal antibodies Symphobodies Symplex™ Symphoglobulin-D Symphoglobulin-VIG Symphoglobulin-RSV Oncology Cancer therapy Cambridge Antibody Technology (CAT) Licence Patents Proprietary platform
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