Cellceutix Corporation, based in Beverly, MA, has been receiving a lot of attention recently with the developments of two of their very special compounds. Cellceutix focuses their attention on the development of small molecules for unmet needs in the field of biotechnology. “Unmet needs” can mean a couple different things. One, it can mean that there is no drug on the market today that approaches a treatment for an illness from a certain clinical perspective. Second, it can mean that the present drugs available are becoming ineffective as cells can develop what is referred to as “resistance” to the standard treatments. Remember that cells are capable of regenerating and mutating. Cancer cells, in particular, are extremely adept at developing high levels of resistance making the need for new therapies to be developed to combat the illness.
Cellceutix has identified two large areas with a great need for new, revolutionary drugs. They are developing their compound, KM-391, as a treatment for autism. The Company acquired the rights to KM-391 late in 2009 and has had very promising pre-clinical test results to this point. What makes this the most unique compound being developed for autism today is that it addresses autism at its core. There are plenty of drugs on the market today that treat the symptoms that result from having autism, but there is nothing available that attempts to treat autism at the root cause.
Being that autism is a “spectrum disorder,” a great challenge is present. It is a biotechnology fact that an autistic brain has specific characteristics with regards to serotonin levels and brain plasticity that differ from a normally functioning brain. These facts are the basis of the research. Early testing has shown very promising results and as these results have been disclosed to the public, Cellceutix has been the recipient of countless phone calls, emails and other correspondences from around the country from the general public, industry leaders and the media requesting more information and expressing a great interest in seeing further development of KM-391. Earlier this week, Cellceutix issued a press release stating that they have responded to the public outcries and have drawn upon its resources to expedite pre-clinical testing of KM-391. Significant amounts of time have been eliminated through cooperative efforts from prestigious institutions to modify schedules in order to accommodate KM-391 research.
Kevetrin™, Cellceutix’s flagship compound, is closing in on Phase 1 Clinical Trials in humans. The final stages of pre-clinical research are complete with the data being evaluated now for formal presentation. Once this is complete, an Investigational New Drug (IND) application can be filed with the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Phase 1 trials will then follow and hopefully will be underway in the fourth quarter of this year. Kevetrin, like KM-391, is a 100% novel compound. Most drugs on the market today are merely derivatives of existing compounds, but Kevetrin and KM-391 are completely unique.
Kevetrin is being developed to treat specific strains of lung, breast and colon cancers that demonstrate resistance to multiple drugs on the market today. Pre-clinical animal testing has shown to significantly delay tumor growth. Efficacy, the capacity to produce a desired effect, increased with increasing dosage in the studies. Kevetrin has received acclaims already due to the research conducted by Cellceutix. The American Association for Cancer Research, widely considered by many to be the premier cancer research association in the world, dubbed Kevetrin as on the “frontier of cancer research.”
So what does the future hold for Cellceutix, its compounds and its shareholders? Every developmental biotech has certain levels of speculation, but Cellceutix is a standout from the others. Their management team is led by CEO George Evans, who spent 25 years at Pfizer, ending his tenure as general counsel for the pharma division. Their research team is headed up by President and Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Krishna Menon, who while at Eli Lilly oversaw the development of the two blockbuster cancer drugs that still produce billions of dollars in revenues. Leo Ehrlich, Chief Financial Officer of Cellceutix, has a track record of holding key executive positions in the development of small companies, including his time at NanoViricides that saw the stock price move from $.10 to $4.00.
The Cellceutix Scientific Advisory Board consists of world-renown pioneers in oncology, genetics and compound development. It is no big secret that major pharmas often look to smaller companies, such as Cellceutix, when a novel compound is developed and shows success in human studies. Nor is it a secret about the lucrative amounts of money that are offered from a large biotech to purchase a smaller biotech that has the rights to a successful new drug. The numbers are often into the billions of dollars because of the possible revenues that can be generated. Coupling the strength of the management and research team with the promising data being compiled from pre-clinical research on both Kevetrin and KM-391 and then mixing in the possibilities of revenues that can be generated, it is no wonder that Cellceutix is starting to have a lot more investor’s eyes landing on their ticker when reaching for the “buy” button.
More information about Cellceutix and their research can be found on their corporate website at www.cellceutix.com.
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