Patent granted for Solbec's Cormasine

Perth biotech Solbec Pharmaceuticals (ASX:SBP) has been granted an Australian patent covering aspects of the manufacturing, purification process and formulation of the active pharmaceutical ingredients of the company's lead compound Coramsine.

Formerly known as SBP002, Coramsine, is in clinical trials for the treatment of advanced solid tumours and as a topical treatment for psoriasis.

This is the second Coramsine related patent application that has been granted.

"There are another five patents that we've put in, which extend the life of the product out to 2023, based on their priority dates," said Solbec managing director and CEO Stephen Carter.

International patent applications are currently going through Patent Cooperation Treaty filing and the US patent office in parallel, said Carter.

"We expect to see some of those patents allowed this year," he said.

Cormasine clinical trials

Two of the Cormasine Phase I/IIa trials for solid tumours are complete, with the third trial for continuous infusion being fully enrolled, said Carter. The patients enrolled in these trials have tumours which are non-responsive and are resistant to treatment such as chemotherapy. "We've seen some quite good preliminary efficacy in these patients," said Carter. Phase IIb trials are expected to begin later this year.

However, as previously reported in Australian Biotechnology News, the psoriasis Phase I/IIa clinical trial of Coramsine did not show sufficient efficacy to progress to larger Phase II trials.

"We've gone back to the laboratory, we've reformulated, we're now taking that formulation through some proof of concept work before we move back into humans," said Carter. "We believe it is a formulation related problem based on a review of the science."