NUVELO PUBLISHES PRECLINICAL STUDY RESULTS

Nuvelo has announced the publication of data from a study of NU206, a secreted protein in preclinical development, showing that it acts as a specific and potent stimulator of the human epithelial cells that line the gastrointestinal tract and mouth.

This epithelial lining often undergoes significant damage during cancer-related treatments such as chemotherapy or radiation therapy, causing a potentially severe complication known as mucositis. The study, entitled, "Mitogenic Influence of Human R-Spondin1 on the Intestinal Epithelium," was conducted by researchers at Nuvelo in partnership with scientists at the pharmaceutical division of the Kirin Brewery Co., and appears in the Aug. 19 issue of Science.

Using a transgenic mouse model and a subsequent recombinant version of the protein, Nuvelo and Kirin scientists found that the activity of NU206 potently and specifically stimulates the growth of the gastrointestinal epithelium. The study also demonstrates that the action of NU206 is transient and reversible in normal tissue, meaning that once the growth factor was withdrawn, the epithelium of the intestine reverted to its normal state and did not continue to proliferate.