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PhotoCure - Efficient cancer gene therapy induced by the PCI technology |
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29 Mar 2006 |
OSLO, Norway | Mar 28, 2006 | PhotoCure is, together with its subsidiary PCI Biotech, developing a proprietary technology for site-specific drug delivery and drug enhancement called Photochemical Internalisation (PCI). In a scientific article published in the leading gene therapy journal "Molecular Therapy" it is now demonstrated that PCI can be used for enhancing gene therapy of cancer. Thus, in an animal model the employment of the PCI technology improved an otherwise non-functional gene therapy to a level where more than 80 % of the animals were cured from their tumours.
Gene therapy is acknowledged as having a substantial therapeutic and economic potential, but the realization of this potential has hitherto been severely limited by the lack of efficient, specific and safe technologies for delivering the therapeutic genes to the relevant cells in the body.This article demonstrates that the PCI technology can contribute to solving this important issue.
Kjetil Hestdal, President and CEO of PhotoCure, says: "Achieving safe and efficient gene delivery in the body has been a major limiting factor in the development of gene therapy. This article demonstrates that with the PCI technology efficient cancer gene therapy can be achieved without the use of virus gene delivery agents, the side effects of which have severely hampered the progress of gene therapy as a clinical treatment."
PCI Biotech AS is a subsidiary of PhotoCure, established in year 2000 to commercialize the company's proprietary technology for Photochemical Internalisation (PCI). The PCI technology can be used for enhancing the effect of drugs specifically at illuminated sites in the body (e.g. in tumours), and has a potential to improve the effect both of existing drugs and of emerging treatments such as gene therapy and other therapies based on biotechnological principles.
PhotoCure ASA is a Norwegian pharmaceutical company founded in 1993 and listed on Oslo Stock Exchange. The company develops and sells pharmaceuticals and medical devices based on proprietary photodynamic technologies, targeting key dermatology and oncology markets.
PhotoCure has two products with sales and marketing approvals: Metvix®, which is a product developed for the treatment of skin cancer (basal cell carcinoma) and pre-cancerous skin lesions (actinic keratosis), and Hexvix®, which is developed for the detection of bladder cancer. Both products are based on the same photodynamic technology, combining the drug known as a photosensitiser with a light source that activates the photosensitiser. PhotoCure is currently testing both products for new indications and aims to develop a pipeline of follow-on products and technologies.
For further information, contact:
PhotoCure ASA
Attn. Kjetil Hestdal (President and CEO) or Christian Fekete (CFO)
Hoffsveien 48
NO-0377 Oslo
Norway
www.photocure.com
Telephone: +47 22 06 22 10
Fax: +47 22 06 22 18
Kjetil Hestdal (
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Mobile: +47 913 19 535
Christian Fekete (
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Mobile: +47 916 42 938
SOURCE: PhotoCure, ASA |
