New therapeutics for cancer

A team of scientists at the University of Liverpool has secured the services of the National Biomanufacturing Centre (NBC) to develop and manufacture antibodies against a novel cancer antigen.

Dr Roger Barraclough, from the School of Biological Sciences, is working on a new protein which causes some cancer cells to spread around the body. This protein is being developed to assist in improving the management of breast cancer.

He has been awarded £69k from the North West Development Agency (NWDA) to pay for the services of the NBC. Eden Biodesign is the NBC designated operator that will engage in the production of the purified antibody and protein to enable further characterisation of the protein and clinical testing to be performed.

Dr Barraclough said: "The collaboration will advance our efforts of developing new therapeutics for cancer."

Dr Crawford Brown, CEO of Eden Biodesign, commented: "We are very pleased that the University of Liverpool has chosen to work with us to help get these new medicines out of research labs and into the clinic."

The NBC, opened earlier this year, is a £34 million Government-funded initiative led by the NWDA with additional funding through the Objective 1 programme for Merseyside and the Department for Trade & Industry. It provides expertise and facilities to support new and existing biotechnology companies, offering product development services deigned to fill in the skill and resource gaps that exist within these organisations.

The collaboration has been facilitated by MerseyBIO, based at the University of Liverpool, who are leading the development of the life sciences sector on Merseyside.