ProPhase Labs, Inc. announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, ProPhase BioPharma, Inc. (“PBIO”), and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have entered into a two-year collaborative agreement to further the research and development of a small molecule, Linebacker-1 (LB-1), that is intended as a therapy enhancer for traditional chemotherapeutic agents to both increase efficacy and decrease toxicity in current cancer treatments. This collaboration provides for year 1 and year 2 research plans and will examine the tumoricidal effects of the flavonoid/polyphenol. LB-1 will be co-administrated with chemotherapy agents in-vitro, in different cell lines, and in-vivo subcutaneous mouse tumor models. The project will examine the tumoricidal effects in an orthotopic mouse model and the potential advantages of nanoparticle-based administration of Linebacker-1 in-vivo.
The collaboration will be led by Mike Makrigiorgos Ph.D. and Sayeda Yasmin-Karim, MD, Ph.D. Dr. Makrigiorgos is a Professor at Dana-Farber, Professor at Harvard Medical School, and Director of the Medical Physics and Biophysics Division of the Department of Radiation Oncology at Dana-Farber and Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Dr. Makrigiogos has conducted extensive research with similar compounds and has diverse experience in the fields of molecular diagnostics, nano technology-based drug delivery, and radiation therapeutics. His lab has published several papers in scientific journals including Nature, Nucleic Acid Research and Nano-Letters.
“We are very familiar with the polyphenols in the linebacker compound and believe that this compound has significant potential. We look forward to exploring this further in our upcoming studies,” stated Dr. Makrigiorgos.
Dr. Yasmin-Karim is an Instructor at Dana-Farber and Harvard Medical School. She is a senior member of Dr. Makrigiorgos’ laboratory and has more than 25 years of experience in developing and testing cancer drugs in preclinical models, in-vivo. She has extensive research skills in the fields of oncology, polyphenols and nano delivery systems. Dr. Yasmin-Karim has numerous publications to her credit.
Dr. Yasmin-Karim commented, “We’ve performed extensive research on the data sets and have chosen the best way forward for continued research on LB-1.”
“ProPhase Labs is eager to explore new avenues for scientific discovery with these talented scientists as we pursue novel pathways for cancer treatment. At ProPhase, we strive for excellence in assessment and discovery, abiding by the standards of the leaders in the industry. We aim to create our own path, become the leaders and pioneers of tomorrow, and we are delighted to be joined by our new collaborators on this journey of new cancer treatment discovery,” commented Ted Karkus, ProPhase Lab’s Chief Executive Officer.
“We believe that this collaboration fits nicely within our 18-month, $2-5 million budget for Linebacker. Our goal over this period is to complete preclinical lab studies and a Phase 1 human clinical study. We continue to believe that this platform has multi-billion-dollar potential in oncology as well as significant potential in other fields,” Mr. Karkus concluded.