CarboMed Inc. said Tuesday that the National Cancer Institute (NCI)agreed to a collaboration on the development of its lead compound,CM101, an anti-angiogenic agent being tested against variouscancers.

Charlotte Hellerqvist, president and co-founder of CarboMed, toldBioWorld the NCI will produce enough of the drug for Phase IItrials, which have not yet been approved. Fifteen patients withrefractory malignancies were tested in a Phase I study at VanderbiltMedical Center in Nashville, Tenn.

CM101 is a polysaccharide exotoxin produced by group Bstreptococcus that selectively binds to the developing blood vesselsof malignant tumors, and induces a severe inflammatory reactionleading to destruction of the neovasculature and tumor necrosiswithout harming healthy tissues, the company said.

CarboMed, established in 1990 to develop the drug that came fromresearch at Vanderbilt, plans to develop the drug itself in the U.S.But Hellerqvist said the company would like to get licensing partnersfor Europe and the Far East. She said CarboMed spent only $3.5million in taking CM101 through Phase I. _ Jim Shrine

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