VioQuest Pharmaceuticals today announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has issued the first patent for the company's investigational product candidate Lenocta (sodium stibogluconate). U.S. Patent No. 7,416,723 entitled "Therapeutic compositions and methods useful in modulating protein tyrosine phosphatases," encompasses novel compositions including Lenocta for the treatment of cancer and a broad range of other diseases.
"Based on Lenocta's demonstrated anti-tumor activity against melanoma, renal cancer, prostate cancer, leukemia, and other cancers both alone and in combination with other approved immune-activation agents, including IL-2 and interferons, we believe this product candidate represents a promising approach to treating cancer," said Michael D. Becker, president and chief executive officer of VioQuest Pharmaceuticals. "We are also enthusiastic about the new FDA priority review voucher program, which could enable us to accelerate development and commercialization efforts for Lenocta in the treatment of leishmaniasis."
Pentavalent antimonial compounds such as Lenocta are considered as a first-line treatment for leishmaniasis, a protozoan infection usually found in tropic and sub-tropic countries. The pharmacological mechanism of action for pentavalent antimonials in treating leishmaniasis is not fully understood, but research has indicated that the therapeutic effect might be mediated via cellular targets. Researchers at The Cleveland Clinic recently discovered that Lenocta inhibits specific protein tyrosine phosphatases, which are relevant in the treatment of cancer and other diseases.
VioQuest Pharmaceuticals licensed rights to sodium stibogluconate from the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and is developing the drug as a protein tyrosine phosphatase inhibitor for a range of potential indications. According to the results of both preclinical and clinical trials: