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Helix BioPharma Corp. signs L-DOS47 manufacturing agreement with BioVectra dcl
Helix BioPharma Corp. signs L-DOS47 manufacturing agreement with BioVectra dcl.
About this update from Helix Biopharma Corp.
[{"type":"text","content":"\n\n\n\nAURORA, ON, Jan. 5 /CNW/ - Helix BioPharma Corp. (TSX: HBP/Frankfurt:\nWKN 918846) announced today that it has signed an agreement with BioVectra, a\ndivision of Diagnostic Chemicals Limited (\"BioVectra dcl\"), to manufacture\nL-DOS47 bulk drug product for human clinical testing.\n\n\n\"The signing of this agreement builds upon previous manufacturing work\nthrough which fundamental cGMP processing parameters for L-DOS47 have been\ndeveloped,\" said John Docherty, Helix's Vice President of Corporate\nDevelopment. \"BioVectra dcl is a natural choice for our clinical manufacturing\nprogram requirements because in addition to their high calibre capabilities in\nthe cGMP production of biopharmaceuticals, they are also one of the largest\nNorth American producers of the urease substance at the heart of our L-DOS47\ndrug product.\"\n\n\nDuring 2007, Helix intends to continue to work diligently on completing\nthe remaining preclinical animal testing work with L-DOS47, in parallel with\nfinalizing its clinical manufacturing activities. In working to complete this\nprogram, Helix is focused on its path toward pursuing the necessary regulatory\nauthorizations thereafter to conduct a Phase I clinical trial with L-DOS47 in\npatients with adenocarcinoma of the lung.\n\n\nAbout L-DOS47\n\n\nL-DOS47 combines Helix's proprietary DOS47 new drug candidate with a\nhighly specific single domain antibody to form a potential new targeted drug\nproduct for the treatment of adenocarcinoma of the lung, the most common form\nof cancer in the world today. L-DOS47 is thought to function by leveraging a\nnatural process in the body called the urea cycle to produce an anti-cancer\neffect. It is based upon a naturally occurring enzyme called urease that\nessentially reverses the urea cycle by breaking down urea into metabolites\nthat include ammonia and hydroxyl ions. By doing so at the site of cancerous\ntissues in the body, L-DOS47 is believed to modify the microenvironmental\nconditions of lung cancer cells in a manner that leads to their death. Among\nthese theorized effects, L-DOS47 is believed to stimulate an increase in the\npH of the microenvironment surrounding the cancerous cells, effectively\nreversing the acidic extra-cellular conditions that are known to be necessary\nfor cancer cell survival. As well, the local production of ammonia at t...