Human Antibody Kills Cancer Cells in Mice

Tumors were induced by inoculating Daudi cells, a CD20-expressing human lymphoma cell line, which readily grows in immuno-deficient (SCID) mice. For this model, Daudi cells were transfected with luciferase, which makes them bioluminescent. The fact that HuMax-CD20 binds to a unique site on CD20 target cells may help to explain why the antibody has outperformed other CD20 antibodies in a variety of preclinical studies.

"We have observed the unusually good performance of HuMax-CD20 in a large number of preclinical tests, and have been conducting research to help explain why the antibody binds to and kills the disease target so effectively,” said Lisa N. Drakeman, Ph.D., CEO of Genmab (Copenhagen, Denmark; www.genmab.com), which is developing the new therapeutic.