Telik Announces Publication of Review Focused on the Inhibition of the Enzyme GSTP1-1 as a Target for New Cancer Treatments
PALO ALTO, Calif., July 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Telik, Inc.
(NASDAQ: TELK) today announced the publication
of a review in the journal, Cell Death and Differentiation:
Glutathione transferases as mediators of signaling pathways
involved in cell proliferation and cell death; http://www.nature.com/cdd/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/cdd201080a.html.
This review describes recent advances in the understanding of the
important role that the enzyme GSTP1-1 plays in the progression of
cancer and other diseases associated with increased cell
proliferation. Telintra®, Telik's investigational drug
candidate inhibitor of GSTP1-1, has recently been reported to show
positive results in a Phase 2 trial in patients with MDS, a disease
characterized by disordered cell proliferation and differentiation.
Reprints of the publication are available from Telik.
Background on MDS
The myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a heterogeneous group of
clonal hematopoietic stem cell disorders characterized by
ineffective hematopoiesis (blood cell production) involving one or
more cell lineages (red blood cells, white blood cells or
platelets) and a variable risk of transformation to acute myeloid
leukemia (AML). MDS becomes more common with age. It is estimated
that MDS affects approximately 300,000 people worldwide. According
to the American Cancer Society, 10,000-20,000 new cases of MDS are
diagnosed each year in the United States, with survival rates
ranging from six months to six years. MDS patients often require
blood transfusions to manage their disease.
There remains a critical need for effective, well tolerated
therapies for MDS. Telintra has a novel mechanism of action that
inhibits an enzyme called glutathione S-transferase P1-1 which may
activate JNK kinase, a key regulator of cellular growth and
differentiation of blood precursor cells. Telintra has been shown
to stimulate normal multilineage differentiation of blood stem cell
precursors and induce cancer cell death, or apoptosis, in human
leukemia cell lines. Additional information on Telintra is
available at www.telik.com.
About Telik
Telik, Inc. of Palo Alto, CA, is a clinical stage drug
development company focused on discovering and developing small
molecule drugs to treat cancer. The company's most advanced drug
candidates in clinical development are Telintra, a modified
glutathione analog for the treatment of MDS and Severe Chronic
Neutropenia (SCN), and Telcyta®, a cancer activated prodrug for
the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer and ovarian
cancer. Telik's product candidates were discovered using its
proprietary drug discovery technology, TRAP®, which enables the
rapid and efficient discovery of small molecule drug
candidates.
Telik, the Telik logo, TELINTRA, TELCYTA and TRAP are trademarks
or registered trademarks of Telik, Inc.
Source: Telik, Inc.
CONTACT: Patricia P. Frias, Corporate Communications of Telik,
Inc.,
+1-650-845-7927, pfrias@telik.com
Web Site: http://www.telik.com/
Posted: July 2010
