Glenmark Pharmaceuticals SA, a wholly owned Swiss subsidiary of Mumbai based Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, has announced that its monoclonal anti-body, involved in chronic pain, is entering human trials.
In 2010, Glenmark had gained an exclusive worldwide license from Lay Line Genomics SpA in Italy, for anti-TrkA antibodies and their entire intellectual property portfolio in the TrkA field. The company said GBR 900 is the optimised anti-TrkA antibody emerging from this exclusive worldwide license.
Glenmark has now completed the Phase I trials enabling preclinical development programme for GBR 900, and has filed a Phase I clinical trial application with the United Kingdom's MHRA. GBR 900 is the first anti-TrkA monoclonal anti-body to enter clinical development.
TrkA is the pain-signalling receptor for Nerve growth factor (NGF). Monoclonal antibodies directed against NGF represent one of the rare clinical breakthroughs in chronic pain treatment and have shown good clinical activity in inflammatory and neuropathic pain. The company said development of the class has otherwise been curtailed due to suspected toxicity.
The company said GBR 900 has shown efficacy in inflammatory pain, for example in cases of osteoarthritis.