Global InformationEndocyte information
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
Traded as | Nasdaq: ECYT |
| Industry | Biopharmaceutical |
| Founded | 1996 |
| Headquarters | West Lafayette, Indiana , United States |
Key people | Mike Sherman, President and CEO |
Number of employees | 78 |
| Parent | Novartis |
| Website | www |
Endocyte (NASDAQ: ECYT) is a biopharmaceutical company established in 1996 and headquartered in West Lafayette, Indiana,[1] a resident of the Purdue Research Park.[2] In 2011 the company completed successfully an initial public offering (IPO).[3] As of 2013[update], the company had 93 employees.[1] The original president and CEO, Ron Ellis,[1] was succeeded by Mike Sherman, who held a CFO position at the company before this change in June 2016. In 2018 the company was acquired by Novartis.[4]
Endocyte is advancing the first technology platform for the creation of small molecule drug conjugates (a.k.a. SMDCs), which consist of a small molecule linked to a potent drug, and is developing a pipeline of SMDCs together with non-invasive companion imaging agents for cancer, inflammatory diseases and kidney disease (autosomal-dominant polycystic kidney disease/ADPKDor PKD).[1][5] Endocyte’s lead drug candidate is vintafolide, an investigational targeted cancer therapeutic in late-stage development. In 2012 marketing rights were acquired by Merck for $120 million in an upfront payment and up to $880 million in milestone payments.[6] Vintafolide is a small molecule drug conjugate consisting of a small molecule targeting the folate receptor, which is expressed on many cancers, such as ovarian cancer, and a potent chemotherapy drug, a derivative of vinblastine.[1] Endocyte retained rights to the development and commercialization of etarfolatide.[6]
Endocyte’s other preclinical drug candidates also target the folate receptor as well as prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) receptors.[1] The company was formed based on technology developed by Philip Low (the company's CSO), and Christopher Leamon, PhD, the company’s VP of research. This technology is a folic acid-based drug delivery system,[1] referred to now as folate targeting.[7] The company is also developing SMDCs with varying drug payloads as well as different ligands for other molecular targets, such as prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) and has also developed, with Bristol-Myers Squibb, an epothilone-folic acid conjugate (BMS-753493), described at a 2008 conference.[8]
In mid-October 2018, Novartis announced it would acquire Endocyte Inc for $2.1 billion ($24 per share) merging it with a newly created subsidiary.[9][10] Endocyte will bolster Novartis' offering in its radiopharmaceuticals business, with Endocyte's first in class candidate 177Lu-PSMA-617 being targeted against metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.[11]
- ^ a b c d e f g Potera, Carol (April 2013). "Exploiting Folate Pathways to Treat Cancer: Endocyte Uses an Imaging Agent to Select Patients Likely to Respond to Its Therapies". Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News. 33 (7): 12, 14. doi:10.1089/gen.33.7.03.
- ^ "Clinical Trials Update", Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News, 29 (8): 58, 2009
- ^ Rapaport, Lisa; Spears, Lee (4 February 2011). "Drugmaker Endocyte Rises 29% After Initial Public Offering". Bloomberg.
- ^ Taylor, Nick Paul (2018-10-18). "Novartis inks $2.1B Endocyte buyout, furthering radiotherapy push". Fierce Biotech. Retrieved 2022-04-13.
- ^ "Endocyte's kidney conjugates get right to the spot - FiercePharma". www.fiercedrugdelivery.com.
- ^ a b "Endocyte soars on cancer drug deal with Merck". Reuters. 16 April 2012.
- ^ Leamon, C. P.; Low, P. S. (1 July 1991). "Delivery of macromolecules into living cells: a method that exploits folate receptor endocytosis". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 88 (13): 5572–5576. Bibcode:1991PNAS...88.5572L. doi:10.1073/pnas.88.13.5572. PMC 51919. PMID 2062838.
- ^ Covello, Kelly; Flefleh, Christine; Menard, Krista; Wiebesiek, Amy; McGlinchey, Kelly; Wen, MeiLi; Westhouse, Richard; Reddy, Joe; Vlahov, Iontcho; Hunt, John; Rose, William; Leamon, Chris; Vite, Greg; Lee, Francis (1 May 2008). "Preclinical pharmacology of epothilone-folate conjugate BMS-753493, a tumor-targeting agent selected for clinical development". Cancer Research. 68 (9 Supplement): 2326.
- ^ "Novartis to buy cancer drugmaker Endocyte for $2.1 billion in cash". Reuters. 18 October 2018.
- ^ Miller, John (18 October 2018). "Novartis pushes deeper into nuclear medicine with $2.1 billion deal". Reuters.
- ^ "Novartis announces planned acquisition of Endocyte to expand expertise in radiopharmaceuticals and build on commitment to transformational therapeutic platforms". Novartis.