Lakewood-Amedex Inc., a leading developer of novel anti-infective pharmaceuticals, announced today that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has issued Notice of Allowances on three patent applications relating to the use of novel monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) caused by shiga toxin II secreting E.coli O157: H7 strain.
Lakewood Amedex is the exclusive licensee of the US patents, issued to Tufts University. Based on work led by Saul Tzipori, BVSc., DSc., PhD, distinguished professor of biomedical sciences at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts, as well as other members of the school's Division of Infectious Diseases, the patents entitled -- "Humanized Neutralizing Antibodies against Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome" -- are the first patents to be granted in this family and will provide the Company with a strong intellectual property position for treating this serious illness. HUS is usually associated with E.coli 0157:H7 food poisoning and affects more than 300,000 people worldwide annually. There is currently no approved therapeutics for the treatment of this condition, which mainly affects young children and the elderly, as well as individuals with compromised immune systems. The Company is seeking to fast-track development of its lead fully human monoclonal antibody candidate into clinical trials in 2011.
The Company's head scientist, Paul DiTullio, commented "The granting of these three patents will give Lakewood-Amedex a dominant position for the use of monoclonal antibodies to treat this life threatening condition. Although the initial indication will be for the treatment of hemolytic uremic syndrome, the Company believes the product will have a more expanded usage in preventing the kidney damage caused by shiga toxin in patients suffering from a less severe infection which can lead to a number of health complications later in life. The market for this product is estimated to be between $100 million and $400 million annually on a worldwide basis.
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