Dirk Dittmer, PhD, co-director of the UNC Lineberger global oncology program and a professor in the UNC School of Medicine, led a team to develop a xenograft mouse model based on Kaposi sarcoma endothelial cells positive for human herpes virus 8.
A mouse model developed by a UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center researcher was used in a pre-clinical study evaluating a potential treatment for herpes-linked Kaposi sarcoma, a Switzerland-based company has announced.
Dirk Dittmer, PhD, co-director of the UNC Lineberger global oncology program and a professor in the UNC School of Medicine, led a team to develop a xenograft mouse model based on Kaposi sarcoma endothelial cells positive for human herpes virus 8.
In an announcement made by the company, Zurich-based Delenex Therapeutics AG announced that a pre-clinical trial testing an investigational treatment for herpes-linked Kaposi sarcoma showed efficacy for the treatment.
The clinical-stage company’s investigational treatment is designed to bind a growth factor that mediates growth of new blood vessels for tumors. According to the company, neutralizing the growth factor is designed to starve the tumor by blocking blood vessel growth and directly inhibiting tumor cell proliferation.
Dittmer does not have a financial stake in the company. The mouse model research was supported by the University Cancer Research Fund and the National Cancer Institute. Delenex provided a drug donation.