Quest PharmaTech, a biotechnology firm specializing in cancer treatment products, has declared that the Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology has accepted to publish a research paper titled ‘Antitumor Efficacy of Photodynamic Therapy Using Novel Nanoformulations of Hypocrellin Photosensitizer SL052.’
The paper covers the findings of a comparison study of the anti-cancer impact of the nano-formulation of SL052, a photosensitizer of Quest PharmaTech, against other earlier nano-formulation developed by the company in partnership with Edmonton-based IntelligentNano for photodynamic therapy. Researchers at the Vancouver-based BC Cancer Agency and the Saskatoon-based University of Saskatchewan carried out the study.
According to the findings, the novel nano-formulation of SL052 of Quest PharmaTech demonstrated superior anti-cancer impact when compared to the other nano-formulations. The study results were earlier reported in the Nanomedicine journal under the title ‘Water-Soluble and Biocompatible Sono/Photosensitizer Nanoparticles for Enhanced Cancer Therapy.’
Quest PharmaTech has submitted patent applications of these two nano-formulations and has started a preclinical study to assess their potential for curing gastrointestinal cancer by intravenously delivering the proprietary SL052 photosensitizer. These second-generation photodynamic therapy products of the company will support its current prostate cancer treatment initiative that uses the SL052 photosensitizer with an innovative intra-arterial drug delivery system.
The mechanism of Quest PharmaTech’s photo/sono-sensitizer based on innovative hypocrellin has been investigated in another study conducted by the University of Alberta and the findings were reported in the Journal of Investigational New Drugs under the title ‘Sonodynamic and Photodynamic Mechanisms of Action of the Novel Hypocrellin Sonosensitizer; SL017: Mitochondrial Cell Death is Attenuated by 11, 12-Epoxyeicosatrienoic Acid.’
Source: http://www.questpharmatech.com