PALO ALTO, Calif., April 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Genencor International, Inc. announced today it has signed a contract research agreement with BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc., for the use of Genencor’s proprietary i-mune(R) assay platform to determine the potential immunogenicity of a preclinical therapeutic protein drug candidate. Genencor’s i-mune assay technology is an epitope identification tool that provides predictive information on the immunogenicity of protein therapeutics.
“Our i-mune assay technology has proven to be an effective method in assessing the potential immunogenicity of protein-based therapeutics in the early, pre-clinical stages,” said Michael Arbige, Ph.D., senior vice president, Technology, for Genencor. “BioMarin now joins a growing list of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies that have either licensed or contracted i-mune(R) assay technology from Genencor.” Genencor is offering the i-mune assay platform for therapeutic development through either contract research services or non-exclusive technology licenses.
Protein therapeutics is a growing pharmaceutical segment accounting for more than $20 billion in US-based revenues in 2005. All therapeutic proteins, even human or humanized, have the potential to elicit an adverse immune response in some patient populations. In most cases, exposure to a therapeutic protein has no deleterious effects, but in some cases exposure to the protein can result in the generation of protein-specific antibodies. Prediction of the relative immunogenicity in the early stage of drug development represents an opportunity for improving the safety and efficacy of therapeutic protein products. Epitopes, which are identified via the i-mune assay, can be re-engineered achieving an immuno-optimized protein with reduced immunogenicity in humans.
Genencor collaborates with other companies by bringing its proprietary i-mune assay technology and technical expertise in immunogenicity assessment to its partner’s product candidates. Genencor provides contract i-mune assay evaluations for pharmaceutical, personal care and agri-based companies developing protein-based products. In addition, Genencor can provide non- exclusive licenses to the i-mune assay technology enabling faster internal development of safe and effective immuno-optimized protein-based products.
About Genencor
Genencor International, a division of Danisco A/S, is a leading industrial biotechnology company that develops innovative enzymes and bioproducts to improve the performance and reduce the environmental impact of the cleaning, textiles, fuels and chemicals industries.
Genencor International, Inc.
CONTACT: Richard J. LaDuca, Ph.D., Senior Director, Technology/BusinessDevelopment for Genencor International, +1-650-846-7537 Office Number,+1-650-996-7678 Mobile Number, rladuca@genencor.com
