Defence Therapeutics Inc. announced that it has successfully reached the first milestone established in the Collaboration Agreement with Orano Support SAS on behalf of Orano SA, to develop the next generation radio-immunoconjugates using Defence?s intracellular targeting technology. The first milestone consists of synthesising the AccuTOXTM peptide containing the DOTA chelator and the Azide moiety. The DOTA chelator will be used to encapsulate the radioactive molecule, while the Azide moiety is used for antibody linking via click chemistry.

The following milestones consist in synthesising a second AccuTOXTM variant containing a cathepsin B-dependent cleavable sequence (valine-citrulline). The conjugation of the uncleavable AccuTOXTM peptide variant to the Herceptin antibody (trastuzumab) will be performed as well. The development of novel radio-based therapies by combining Defence?s intracellular targeting technology with cancer-targeting antibodies will exhibit a higher specificity and selectivity, and it will also ensure increased therapeutic efficacy with lower adverse events.