Glossary:

Ex-Vivo Ballistic Transfer Tumor Gene Therapy 

Tumor growth is, among many factors, a result of the failure of the body´s immune system to recognize and eliminate the cancer cells, which are growing out of order. Tumor gene therapy, or rather "cancer immunotherapy by gene therapy means", tries to address this situation by provoking an immune response against the tumor cells. Whereas chemotherapy is aimed at reducing tumor mass and eliminating cells by an extraneous chemical treatment, immunotherapy tries to recruit the body´s self-defense in the elimination of the tumor by actively attacking it.

Ex-vivo therapy uses material obtained by a surgical intervention. The tumor cells are treated in such a way that they manufacture certain stimulatory substances which turn on the immune system. These treated cancer cells are then rendered unable to multiply and are given back to the patient. Once within the patient, they would elicit a strong immune response against themselves by virtue of the stimulatory messages they send out. The idea is that by learning to attack the manipulated cells, the immune system aquires the knowledge about the tumor in general and eliminates all residual cancer cells, thus effectively healing the patient.

What is our special approach?

We use a method to get the genes into the tumor cells that relies on gold bombardment of the cells. Onto the gold projectiles that we bring into the cells, we adsorb genetic messages for the stimulatory molecules, and magnetic particles that allow us to separate the cells from unwanted byproducts. We have developed a separation process (Ballistomagnetic Vector System) which enables purification of the treated cells, leading to high initial stimuli to the immune system. Other proprietary inventions are a nozzle for the gene gun and procedure protocols that enable the use of the gene gun technology for clinical purposes. Several of these developments are patented by MOLOGEN.

Glossary:

Molecular Medicine 

Molecular medicine is a medical discipline that combines achievements and methods from such diverse areas as molecular biology, genetics and cell biology. Molecular medicine hopes to tackle the root cause of a condition, not to just ameliorate its symptoms.

The ”Molecular” in the term molecular medicine is best explained in view of the vast knowledge obtained in recent years that relates to molecular structures in cells and organisms. Today it is often possible to nail down the pathogenic, or disease-causing, components of a virus to the very last atom. Thereby, mechanisms can be suggested to tackle any affliction at the molecular level. Unfortunately, the discovery of the genetic or molecular makeup of a virus does not necessarily mean that science has understood the way a virus makes people sick. The rational design of a cure from this knowledge is even further away. But the step-by-step unraveling of the molecular mechanisms will bring science closer to this goal.

One of the most exciting aspects of molecular medicine is the use of genetic information in the treatment of disease. DNA or RNA is transferred into the patient´s cells; the genetic message is then read and used by the body to whatever medical purpose it was introduced to achieve. This is called gene therapy.