The open-label Phase I study is designed to assess the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of MORAb-066 administered with weekly intravenous infusions.
Morphotek president and CEO Nicholas Nicolaides said, "New agents are needed for cancer treatment and our strategy of using collaborations with leading research institutions provides us opportunities to develop novel medicines that target disease-specific pathways."
A humanized monoclonal antibody, MORAb-066 targets tissue factor (TF), a protein whose role under normal conditions is to support blood coagulation.
In cancer, it has been shown that TF is a membrane-bound antigen expressed by tumor endothelial cells that is hypothesized to play a role in promoting tumor angiogenesis and growth.
Earlier, Janssen Biotech granted exclusive worldwide rights to develop and commercialize the antibody to Morphotek.