Validation of polyketides as a therapeutic class
Polyketides are a rich source of pharmaceuticals.
Wide range of therapeutic applications
There are nearly 50 approved drugs based on polyketides in a wide range of pharmaceutical applications. Approved polyketides include anti-bacterials, anti-hyperlipidaemics, anti-cancers, immunosuppressants, anti-fungals and anti-helminthics. These drugs are manufactured by bacterial fermentation, often at very low cost-of-goods.
Clinically and commercially successful
There are six recent blockbuster polyketide-based pharmaceuticals including three HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors (lovastatin, pravastatin and simvastatin), two antibiotics (clarithromycin and azithromycin), and the immunosuppressant tacrolimus. Peak sales of these six compounds alone totaled $15bn.
Continuous innovation
New polyketide therapeutics continue to be approved. Ixabepilone, a novel class of tubulin binder, was approved in 2007 for treatment of breast cancer and a novel rapamycin analogue, temsirolimus, was approved in 2007 for renal cell carcinoma. Biotica’s novoPT™ technology has the potential to broaden the pipeline considerably, by enabling access to a greater diversity of novel polyketide therapeutics.
