Antigenics starts phase I of AG-707 for genital herpes

By E. Janene Geiss

Philadelphia, Oct. 18 - Antigenics Inc. announced Tuesday that it has begun a multicenter phase I clinical trial of AG-707, its therapeutic vaccine for genital herpes.

The study will evaluate the safety and immune response of AG-707 in patients with herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), an infection affecting one in five Americans over the age of 12, company officials said in a news release.

AG-707 is a heat shock protein-based vaccine that is designed to activate the immune system to target HSV-2 infection in a broad population of patients, officials said.

The single-blinded, dose-escalating phase I trial will involve up to 84 patients infected with HSV-2 and having a documented history of clinically active genital herpes. The study will determine the overall safety profile and immune response to AG-707 compared with the immune response to a placebo or adjuvant alone, officials said.

"AG-707 is designed to stimulate a potent T-cell response against the virus to control and reduce the severity of infection," Garo H. Armen, chairman and chief executive officer of Antigenics, said in the release. "With this application of heat shock protein technology, our hope is to be able to provide an effective new treatment option for millions of people suffering from genital herpes."

Officials said epidemiological surveys estimate that 500,000 cases of new genital HSV infections occur each year in the United States with at least 45 million individuals already infected.

New York-based Antigenics is working to develop patient-specific immunotherapeutics and treatments for cancers and infectious diseases. The company's lead product candidate is Oncophage, a late-stage, patient-specific cancer vaccine.

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