Market Data 
Markets
Replies to post #166104 on Biotech Values
09/17/13 5:00 PM
FPA144 is an antibody that inhibits FGF receptor 2b, or FGFR2b, and is being developed to treat
patients with gastric cancer and potentially other solid tumors. In preclinical studies, FPA144 was
highly effective in blocking the growth of gastric tumors that had abnormally high levels of FGFR2b.
We plan to begin a Phase 1 clinical trial for FPA144 in the second half of 2014 in patients with
tumors expressing high levels of FGFR2b and expect preliminary data by the end of 2015.
"We have pinpointed the binding site that can cause increased spreading of breast cancer cells and thus the development of metastases," said protein researcher Jesper Velgaard Olsen, Professor at the Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research, University of Copenhagen.
"We have studied two cellular signaling proteins with each their widely different biological influence on the so-called FGFR2b receptor. One of the proteins is involved in cell division, whereas the other controls cell movement. Both processes are important for a healthy cell, but if they spin out of control it may have serious implications, e.g. in the form of cancer cell growth and development of metastases,” said Olsen.
The findings have just been published in the scientific journal Molecular Cell.
The FGFR2b receptor is co-responsible for the optimal development of inner organs at the embryonic stage, in particular lung tissue. A dysfunction in the receptor's signal therefore has serious implications for normal lung tissue function. The receptor has also proved to play an important role in certain types of breast cancer.
AI
