Introgen awarded patent for gene-based therapies for cancer

By Lisa Kerner

Erie, Pa., Feb. 14 - Introgen Therapeutics, Inc. was awarded a patent by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office covering administration of chemotherapeutic drugs, radiation therapies or other agents that have a damaging effect on the DNA of cancer cells, to a cancer patient, followed by administration of a desired therapeutic gene, such as one or more of Introgen's molecular therapies.

The patent claims are not limited to oncology use and may have utility in other diseases, according to a company news release.

Introgen said this latest patent is based on the finding that the potency of any gene-based product may be increased by pretreatment of cancer cells with chemotherapy or other DNA damaging agents.

Virtually all cancer patients receive DNA damaging agents such as chemotherapy or radiotherapy as part of a standard treatment regimen, the release stated. By treating cancer cells with chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy prior to receiving targeted molecular therapies, the effects of the treatment are enhanced.

This enhanced therapeutic effect is not dependent on the type of cancer or the method by which chemotherapy or radiotherapy is delivered.

"This patent further validates Introgen's intellectual property strategy, which is to patent technology that is clinically useful, can be broadly applied to a variety of products and predicts new, less toxic ways to treat cancer, particularly in therapies that may lessen the side effects of currently available treatments," David L. Parker, J.D., Ph.D., vice president of intellectual property, said in the release.

The patent (U.S. Patent No. 6,989,375) is one of numerous patents, pending or issued, that Introgen has licensed exclusively from the Board of Regents of The University of Texas System.

Introgen is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of targeted molecular therapies for the treatment of cancer and other diseases. The company is based in Austin, Texas.

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