PharmaCyte Biotech Inc (PMCB)

[TPX]

Better Science Leads to Better Outcomes for PharmaCyte Biotech's Cell-in-a-Box (PMCB)

Aug 28, 2015

The idea of encapsulating living cells and implanting then in the human body to perform a specific medical purpose isn't exactly new. It's just not been widely developed as past results from those efforts have been rather disappointing. PharmaCyte Biotech Inc. (OTCMKTS:PMCB), however, may be close to tapping into the potential of live-cell encapsulation by using a different, more durable and more effective "shell" for its capsules.

It's called Cell-in-a-Box(r). PharmaCyte Biotech is using its rights to the patented technology to develop new ways of administering medicine. The company's nearest target is pancreatic cancer, where the approach is particularly well-suited, though the fact that type 1 diabetes is also on the biotech company's list of targeted diseases speaks to the versatility of the Cell-in-a-Box(r) premise.

The premise is simple enough -- wrap specific living cells engineered or grown to perform a specific function in a shell about the size of the head of a pin, and then deposit those capsules within the body using a special surgical catheter. The shell itself is porous enough to let certain enzymes and hormones out once produced by the living cells inside them, and the shell is also porous enough to let nutrients or other materials in them to keep those cells alive. But, this same shell is organically inert and therefore doesn't spur abnormal tissue growth around it, and perhaps most important of all, the capsule's shell keeps a body's immune system from attacking the cells inside it.

The difference is in the materials.

Most prior attempts at live-cell encapsulation used algae-based polymer alginate with a polyethylenimine coating. The material combination has some compelling aspects. But, according to a review of several encapsulation approaches that was published in August of 2014 (http://austrianova.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/DRTOA-1-102-final.compressed.pdf ), Dr. Brian Salmons and fellow researchers pointed out that in some trials using alginate, the encapsulations were overgrown by fibrous tissue, which may have crimped their effectiveness.

A lack of mechanical strength was also a noted problem for alginate encapsulations.

The same review from Dr. Salmons further noted that cellulose sulphate is an ideal material for the encapsulation of living cells. Aside from an attractive long-term safety profile, cellulose sulphate capsules are flexible but robust, don't appear to induce an inflammatory response, have successfully encapsulated several types of cells. And, perhaps most important, cellulose sulphate encapsulations are relatively easy to mass produce, and can be frozen, shipped, and stored, making them ideal for commercial purposes.

Those are critical scientific details for current and prospective owners of PharmaCyte Biotech, as the aforementioned Cell-in-a-Box(r) encapsulation technology uses cellulose sulphate as the capsule medium.

To date, PharmaCyte has made Cell-in-a-Box(r) the basis for its pancreatic cancer treatment regimen, and plans to soon begin trials of the technology as a means of treating type 1 diabetes.

On the cancer front, Cell-in-a-Box(r) capsules are filled with cells that produce a particular enzyme that catalyzes a cancer-fighting drug called ifosfamide. Ifosfamide is potent, but fragile once exposed to blood plasma. Activated in the liver, by the time it reaches the liver it's often no longer intact in its cancer-fighting form.

PharmaCyte circumvents this shortcoming by activating ifosfamide in the bloodstream right before it reaches the pancreas tumor. How so? Encapsulated living cells that produce a particular enzyme are deposited near an artery in the leg, activating the drug in the bloodstream leading right to the pancreas. The approach allows for smaller doses of the drug, with maximum efficacy.

The pancreatitis cancer trial is currently in phase 2 testing.

As for diabetes, PharmaCyte Biotech aims to engineer and encapsulate insulin-producing cells and deposit them in the body, effectively creating an artificial pancreas. The idea was shown to be effective and safe in a preclinical setting. Human trials are on the horizon.

All told, PharmaCyte is in a position to be the first to make an older idea a viable, commercial success. It's got the right science in Cell-in-a-Box(r), but just as much, it's got creative, novel ideas on how to best use it.

http://www.smallcapnetwork.com/Better-Science-Leads-to-Better-Outcomes-for-PharmaCyte-Biotechs-Cell-in-a-Box-PMCB/s/via/10/article/view/p/mid/1/id/528/