Arrowhead Research Corporation announced today that its new wholly-owned nanobioscience subsidiary has changed its name from "C Sixty Acquisition Corp." to "Tego BioSciences Corporation." The subsidiary recently acquired the assets of C Sixty, Inc. and is focused on the development of new protective products based on the anti-oxidant properties of modified buckministerfullerenes (also known as fullerenes or buckyballs). Tego is initially developing products to reduce oxidative damage caused by sun exposure, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy and mitigate complications associated with organ transplantation and tissue engineering.
"Tego is set to commence preclinical animal studies in collaboration with the National Cancer Institute this summer," said R. Bruce Stewart, Chairman of Arrowhead. "Tego is in the process of assembling a business and technical team with expertise in nanoparticle-based therapeutics and skin care products."
The preclinical studies will be performed in the NCI’s Nanotechnology Characterization Lab (NCL) to measure the ability of a Tego fullerene formulation to protect against harmful side effects of two anti-cancer drugs, cisplastin and adriamycin. The first stage of the studies will use NCL’s resources, with follow on funding from Tego, as appropriate.
The National Cancer Institute (NCI), working in concert with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), established the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (ncl.cancer.gov) to perform preclinical efficacy and toxicity testing of nanoparticles. The NCL serves as a national resource and knowledge base for all cancer researchers to facilitate the regulatory review of nanotechnologies intended for cancer therapies and diagnostics. By providing the critical infrastructure and characterization services to nanomaterial providers, the NCL can accelerate the transition of basic nanoscale particles and devices into clinical applications, thereby reducing suffering and death from cancer.