Merrimack to Present at BIO on the Development of MM-111, a Novel Bispecific ErbB2/ErbB3 Antibody with Potent Anti-Tumor Activity
Modeling and Simulation used to Develop Optimal Bispecific Antibody for Inhibition of ErbB3 Signaling in ErbB2 Over-Expressing Tumors
MM-111 and Trastuzumab (Herceptin(R)) have Complementary Mechanisms of Action and Positively Combine to Inhibit Breast Cancer Growth
MM-111 offers a Novel Approach for the Treatment of ErbB2-Positive Cancers and is Currently in Phase I Trials
PR Newswire
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 30
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Merrimack Pharmaceuticals’ MM-111 Team Leader Charlotte McDonagh, Ph.D., will discuss the development of this novel, bispecific antibody on Tuesday, May 4, at the BIO 2010 International Convention in Chicago, Illinois. Designed to specifically inhibit ErbB3 signaling in ErbB2 over-expressing cancer cells, MM-111 binds to the critical ErbB2/ErbB3 cell receptor signaling complex and disables it from activating the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) pathway, and preventing tumor proliferation.
Merrimack plans to initiate a Phase 1 / 2 study to test MM-111 in combination with Herceptin®. Most recently, at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), Merrimack presented pre-clinical data on the potent combinatorial effect of MM-111 and Herceptin® on inhibiting tumor cell growth driven by the ErbB2/ErbB3 signaling network.
Merrimack researchers identified ErbB3 as a highly sensitive node in the ErbB signaling network in 2003. They also found it played a dominant role in activation of the PI3K pathway, a pathway believed to be used by cancer cells to sustain survival. The importance of ErbB3 in cancer progression is now widely appreciated.
About Merrimack
Merrimack is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery and development of novel medicines for the treatment of cancer and inflammation. The Company is advancing a robust pipeline of engineered therapeutics paired with molecular diagnostics. Merrimack’s first two oncology candidates, MM-121, partnered with sanofi-aventis, and MM-111, are in Phase 1 clinical testing with multiple pre-clinical development and research stage programs in the pipeline. MM-121 and MM-111 are investigational drugs and have not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or any international regulatory agency. The Company’s proprietary Network Biology discovery platform, developed with the help of leading scientists from MIT and Harvard, integrates the fields of engineering, biology, and computing to enable mechanism-based, model driven discovery and development of both therapeutics and diagnostics. Merrimack is a privately-held company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. For additional information, please visit http://www.merrimackpharma.com.
Contact: | Kathleen Petrozzelli, Corporate Communications, Merrimack, | |
617-441-1043 | ||
Betsy Stevenson, RaymondStevenson Healthcare Communications, | ||
860-984-1424 | ||
SOURCE Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
