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news.Morphotek has entered into a license agreement with Blaze Bioscience, a privately held biotechnology company developing Tumor Paint technology.
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Under the agreement, Morphotek provides to Blaze an exclusive, worldwide, royalty-bearing license to develop, license, and once approved, commercialize a potential tumor-targeting chlorotoxin derivative linked to a near-infrared diagnostic agent, which may help visualize cancer cells during surgery.
The tumor-targeting chlorotoxin derivative was originally isolated from scorpion venom. The chlorotoxin peptide was identified and pursued experimentally based on its ability to bind and suppress growth of activated epithelial cells.
Subsequent studies have found that chlorotoxin peptides and engineered variants may bind and potentially be internalized by malignant cells via the annexin A2 complex. A completed Phase 2 clinical trial of radio-labelled chlorotoxin peptide evaluated overall survival in patients with recurrent glioma.
Blaze will utilize the licensed technology in their pipeline of Tumor Paint technology products, which includes BLZ-100, their lead product candidate. BLZ-100 consists of a peptide which binds and is internalized into cancer cells, and a fluorescent dye, which emits light in the near-infrared range.
Tumor Paint products are designed to provide real-time, high-resolution intraoperative visualization of cancer cells, enabling more precise, complete resection of cancer throughout surgery. Preclinical utility of Tumor Paint technology has been demonstrated in a wide range of cancer types, including brain, lung, breast, prostate, and colorectal. BLZ-100 is currently in multiple Phase 1 proof-of-concept clinical studies to evaluate the safety and imaging characteristics of BLZ-100 in solid tumor cancers.
Morphotek president and CEO Nicholas Nicolaides said: "We are excited to partner with Blaze Bioscience to advance these chlorotoxin-based imaging products, which have the potential to improve detection and surgical removal of tumor cells in patients, including those with brain and other solid tumor cancers.
"This license highlights the broad potential for tumor-targeting peptides beyond therapeutic applications and supports Morphotek’s core mission of bringing novel first-in-class products to market for cancer patients worldwide.
Morphotek received an undisclosed upfront payment from Blaze and is eligible to receive scheduled development and sales milestone payments, as well as royalties on future net sales of licensed products. Morphotek retains all rights to develop chlorotoxin derivative products not covered by the terms of this license agreement.