Novel Class of Biopharmaceutical Compounds

A new class of biopharmaceutical compounds called small modular immunopharmaceuticals (SMIPs) is being developed with the goal of creating medicines that are safer and more efficacious and that can be developed easily and cost-effectively.

SMIPs utilize key structures, or modules, in naturally occurring proteins that are optimized to work together in a single molecule. This new class of compounds builds on the expanding success of immunopharmaceuticals based on antibodies, states Trubion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Seattle, WA, USA), which is developing the compounds. SMIPs constructed from the company's growing library of modules represent "designer medicines” with properties selected to optimize safety and efficacy in chosen indications. Trubion's stated goal is to market the next generation of biomedicines that significantly improve upon the progress made by antibody technology. The company notes there are more than 14 antibody drugs currently approved for sale.

"SMIPs can be engineered to use naturally occurring immunological mechanisms more effectively than antibodies. Because SMIPs are about 50% smaller than antibodies, they should be able to more rapidly reach sites of disease, which should add to their potency,” explained chief scientific officer Jeff Ledbetter, Ph.D. "In addition, the studies that we have conducted show that SMIPs, because of their size and composition, can be much more easily expressed and therefore manufactured.” The company now has several molecules in various stages of preclinical testing.




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