Nanotechnology Now - Press Release: BIND Biosciences, Inc. Awarded NIH Phase I SBIR Contract to Develop Therapeutic Targeted Nanoparticles for Prostate Cancer Therapy

Home > Press > BIND Biosciences, Inc. Awarded NIH Phase I SBIR Contract to Develop Therapeutic Targeted Nanoparticles for Prostate Cancer Therapy

Abstract:
BIND Biosciences, Inc. (BIND), a privately held biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapeutic targeted nanoparticles, announced today that it has been awarded a six month $150,000 Phase I SBIR contract from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to develop a targeted therapy for hormone refractory prostate cancer (HRPC). Prostate cancer accounts for an estimated 27,000 annual deaths in the U.S. and is an area of enormous unmet medical need.

BIND Biosciences, Inc. Awarded NIH Phase I SBIR Contract to Develop Therapeutic Targeted Nanoparticles for Prostate Cancer Therapy

Cambridge, MA | Posted on October 8th, 2007

"The NCI SBIR funding is one important validation of BIND's therapeutic targeted nanoparticle platform and will accelerate our prostate cancer program," according to Dr. Jeff Hrkach, Vice President of Pharmaceutical Sciences at BIND and the Principal Investigator on this Phase I SBIR program. "By utilizing BIND's targeted polymeric nanoparticle technology, we will be able to develop revolutionary therapies to address prostate cancer."

"BIND was founded, in-part, based on technologies that were developed through a $20M NCI funded Center for Cancer Nanotechnology Excellence. We view this SBIR contract as a continued collaboration with the NCI as we move toward commercializing breakthrough therapies for important human diseases, including cancer," said Glenn Batchelder, President and Chief Executive Officer of BIND. "We are very fortunate to have Dr. Hrkach leading this program with his extensive expertise in polymeric particle drug delivery and his broad drug development experience accumulated during his tenures at Advance Inhalation Research, Alkermes and Momenta."

The NCI SBIR program is a peer-reviewed competitive funding process that provides research support to companies discovering and developing innovative biomedical products for the treatment and diagnosis of cancer. Companies that successfully meet the goals of this Phase I program are eligible to apply for an additional $1,000,000 in Phase II support to continue their development efforts. This work builds on nanoparticle technologies that were originally developed by BIND's scientific founders, Dr. Robert Langer (MIT) and Dr. Omid Farokhzad (Brigham and Women's Hospital - Harvard Medical School) and BIND has licensed the large patent estate covering these technologies on a worldwide exclusive basis.

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About BIND Biosciences, Inc.
BIND Biosciences is a privately held biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapeutic targeted nanoparticles. The company’s product-platform leverages the convergence of polymeric biomaterials, nanoparticle engineering and combinatorial synthesis to uniquely enable BIND to design and optimize targeted nanoparticle therapeutics for specific indications. BIND’s technology concentrates drug at the intended site of action while minimizing systemic exposure, thereby improving efficacy and reducing off-target effects.

The company’s platform is broadly applicable across therapeutic areas with the initial product development efforts focused in cancer and cardiovascular disease. The company anticipates initiating clinical trials for their first product in 2009. Founded in 2006 and backed by leading venture capital firms, Flagship Ventures and Polaris Venture Partners, BIND is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

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Contacts:
BIND Biosciences, Inc.
Glenn Batchelder, President and CEO, 617-491-3400

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