Apollo adds proteins
Monday, 01 August, 2005
Newly listed Sydney biopharma Apollo (ASX:AOP) has added another 10 more human-expressed proteins (HEPs) to its library, bringing its portfolio of provisionally patented proteins to 60.
Apollo hopes to be generating revenues from sales of its proteins in the market for research reagents in the near future, according to its founder and CEO, John Priest.
The global market for human proteins as research reagents is currently estimated at US$400 million, but most human proteins are currently synthesized in transgenic Escherichia coli bacterial cultures.
Bacteria cannot accurately replicate the results of post-translational modification processes unique to human cells, such as glycosylation, that fine-tune the structure and function of proteins to the host organism's requirements.
Research has shown that post-translational modifications can be critical to the function of protein therapeutics - incorrectly glycosylated proteins, for example, may provoke an immune response against a therapeutic protein.
Priest said a wide range of post-translational modifications influence cell growth, embryonic development, tissue repair, blood vessel growth and hormonal signalling between cells.
Priest said human-expressed proteins will have advantages over bacterially expressed human proteins in the reagents market.
If used solely as reagents in research, proteins do not require regulatory consent from the US Food and Drug Administration or Australia's Therapeutic Goods Administration, which enables Apollo to generate early cash flow, according to Priest.
The company says it produces its human proteins in accordance with strict international guidelines, and Priest said Apollo will enter the market with a substantial initial product range.
The company's HEP library provides multiple commercialization options, he said the company's HEP library will also be the basis for creating therapeutic products that will allow Apollo to enter the biopharmaceutical field with superior products, and to create novel therapies for a number of diseases
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