Dow Announces Services for Radiopharmaceutical Development

25-Jun-2003

The Dow Chemical Company today announced the addition of ChelaMedSM radiopharmaceutical services to its portfolio of products and services for the pharmaceutical industry.

The new service offers technology and capabilities to enable biopharmaceutical companies to transform their breakthrough targeting molecules into biotargeted radiopharmaceuticals. Sometimes called "smart bombs," these new treatments can potentially increase therapeutic options, raise effectiveness and reduce side effects to improve quality of life for patients with cancer and other diseases.

The new service will offer integrated capabilities for development from benchtop through manufacturing. Dow has been working in this field for several years, but the launch of ChelaMed services represents the first broad introduction to the pharmaceutical marketplace.

Enhancing client pipeline portfolios: "Many companies that discover and develop targeting molecules are considering the new arena of biotargeted radiopharmaceuticals," said Nancy Morris, Dow vice president, New Businesses. (Targeting molecules, such as antibodies, are able to go selectively to a place in the body that doctors want to examine or treat.)

"Few companies have the necessary capabilities for radiopharmaceutical development, and developing them is not a simple matter. ChelaMed radiopharmaceutical services will offer the expertise, proprietary technology, and extended capabilities important to success," Morris said.

Breakthroughs in antibody development resulting from human genome research and other discoveries have increased the potential for use of "designer" antibodies. These antibodies are able to selectively target diseased cells such as cancer. Unfortunately, over half of these antibodies fail in late-stage clinical trials because of lack of therapeutic effectiveness. By arming the antibody with a radioisotope, recent clinical trials are showing a significant boost in therapeutic efficacy without jeopardizing patients' quality of life.

Biopharmaceutical discovery companies can use radiopharmaceuticals to enhance their pipeline portfolios. A radioisotope can be teamed with a new targeting molecule to boost its effectiveness. Clinical trials for cancer are indicating therapeutic efficacy of radiopharmaceuticals by themselves, and are also showing synergistic therapeutic efficacy as a co-therapy with naked antibodies.

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Topic world Antibodies

Antibodies are specialized molecules of our immune system that can specifically recognize and neutralize pathogens or foreign substances. Antibody research in biotech and pharma has recognized this natural defense potential and is working intensively to make it therapeutically useful. From monoclonal antibodies used against cancer or autoimmune diseases to antibody-drug conjugates that specifically transport drugs to disease cells - the possibilities are enormous

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Topic world Antibodies

Topic world Antibodies

Antibodies are specialized molecules of our immune system that can specifically recognize and neutralize pathogens or foreign substances. Antibody research in biotech and pharma has recognized this natural defense potential and is working intensively to make it therapeutically useful. From monoclonal antibodies used against cancer or autoimmune diseases to antibody-drug conjugates that specifically transport drugs to disease cells - the possibilities are enormous