Promising study of drug delivery system for cancer treatment

Anticancer Research has, in its latest issue, published results from a successful preclinical study on a new formulation of the cancer therapeutic drug cisplatin. The study has been conducted by Optovent, subsidiary to Accelerator Nordic AB, together with scientists at Karolinska Institute and Heidelberg University.

Optovent runs the ProtR-C project, aiming for drug delivery by use of a right handed coiled coil protein (RHCC) for delivery of cisplatin. Delivery of cisplatin in the RHCC carrier is expected to reduce side-effects and increase the therapeutic effect of the generic cancer drug cisplatin. By enclosing the drug inside the protein capsule, the drug can be directed and delivered to the tumor. Thus less harm is done on healthy tissue and increased efficiency on eliminating tumour cells is achieved.

For development of the RHCC technology, Optovent collaborates with professor Tina Dalianis and her group at Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, and Dr. Suat Özbek at Heidelberg University in Germany.

The study related in Anticancer Research publishes results from experiments on tumor cell lines. When comparing the effect of cisplatin with that of cisplatin inside the RHCC (RHCC/C), the RHCC/C was equally, or more, effective in killing cells in all cell lines tested. Images of RHCC internalized in tumor cells give an important contribution to the understanding of the mechanisms behind the improved effect seen with the technology.

"These are very promising results. The increased effect on tumor cells, and the low immune activation, taken together with compiled knowledge on the RHCC protein, encourages us to go forward with the project", says Trine Vikinge, CTO of Optovent.

The study is published in Anticancer Research, Volume 29, Issue 1, page 11-18.

For more information, please contact Trine Vikinge at +46 13 21 0060

Optovent AB is a development company with focus on platform technologies for drug delivery. The primary application is within cancer therapy and based on the RHCC proprietary technology. This project is in pre-clinical phase.
For more information, please visit us at www.optovent.com

Accelerator Nordic AB has an active majority ownership position in a number of development companies within Bio Pharma and Medical Technology. The Accelerator group is addressing large growth markets as oncology, imaging and the orthopaedic market. The group has a business model based on licensing. Accelerator focuses on projects in the stage of verification where there is a clear unmet need and large industrial players. Accelerator Nordic AB is a publicly listed company traded on the Aktietorget exchange in Stockholm, Sweden.
For more information, please visit, www.acceleratorab.se