Lpath Humanizes Its Anti-S1P Antibody Sphingomab™

Lpath, Inc. has announced the humanization of its Sphingomab™ monoclonal antibody against sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P). S1P is an important bioactive lipid that has been well validated as a cancer drug target.

Humanized versions of antibodies are preferred because they may be administered multiple times to cancer patients without eliciting an immune response.

Findings that demonstrate the profound anti-cancer effects of Sphingomab were recently published in the journal, Cancer Cell.

The murine (mouse-based) form of Sphingomab was the first antibody created using Lpath's proprietary ImmuneY2™ technology.

This proprietary technology provides Lpath a platform from which to generate antibodies against other important bioactive lipids.

"Creating humanized versions of our anti-S1P antibody is a critical milestone in our product development plan," said Scott Pancoast, Lpath's president and chief executive officer.

"Our next step is the selection of a candidate from the humanized variants that we will advance to clinical development. We look to accomplish this during the next few months."

The antibody was humanized for Lpath by the Therapeutic Antibody Group (TAG) of Medical Research Council Technology (MRCT) in London, England.

Dr. Tarran Jones, director of TAG, commented, "We are delighted to have been able to provide Lpath with humanized versions of its anti-S1P antibody and look forward to working with Lpath to produce a clinical candidate."

"Several of the humanized antibodies produced to date retain the desired binding characteristics."

"This collaborative project marks the 29th monoclonal antibody that we have successfully humanized using our proprietary humanization technology."