Onyvax awarded US patent for prostate cancer cell line

London, UK-based biotechnology firm Onyvax has been issued a broad US patent which protects Onycap23, its proprietary prostate cancer cell line, a key component of Onyvax-P, the company's lead product that is designed to stimulate the immune system to fight prostate cancer, currently in two Phase IIb clinical trials.

Onyvax-P consists of three prostate cancer cell lines, each representative of a different site or stage of prostate cancer. Using a combination of cell lines in this way ensures that a broad range of prostate cancer antigens are presented to the immune system and this decreases the risks of the tumor being able to mutate and become resistant to the therapy. Onyvax says it either owns or has exclusive rights to use all three prostate cancer cell lines that form the basis of Onyvax-P.