BioWorld International Correspondent

PARIS - Euroscreen SA, a Belgian company focusing on research into the therapeutic potential of G protein-coupled receptors, acquired an exclusive license from ICOS Corp. for patents relating to the human CCR5 receptor and its role in HIV infection.

The ICOS patents cover the DNA and wild-type human protein sequence of the CCR5 receptor and consolidate the CCR5 receptor patents Euroscreen already holds. The Brussels-based company plans to sublicense this expanded patent portfolio to other companies, especially ones developing CCR5 as a therapy for HIV infection and AIDS.

CCR5 is a chemokine receptor that is found on the surface of T cells and plays a central role in the mechanism by which HIV binds to and enters white blood cells. It is thus a major target in the search for therapies.

Euroscreen in September was granted a U.S. patent covering a specific GPCR sequence in the human CCR5 receptor, which cited the wild-type human CCR5 receptor as well as mutant versions of it. One of those is the delta 32 mutation, which is believed to confer natural resistance to HIV infection in individuals carrying it. The patent also covers the use of the CCR5 receptor in the development of novel HIV diagnostics and therapeutics.

Alfred Gray, Euroscreen's vice president for business development, said the combination of the Euroscreen and Bothell, Wash-based ICOS intellectual property governing the CCR5 receptor in HIV infection "will enable Euroscreen to offer the rights to companies that are developing therapeutic drugs that inhibit the CCR5 receptor." He added that "ICOS and Euroscreen will share the revenues generated from licensing these patents."

In its research into GPCRs, Euroscreen uses its high-throughput AequoScreen cellular assay platform to identify new activators (or ligands) of GPCRs that have therapeutic potential, producing recombinant cell lines and membrane preparations, as well as providing screening and cloning services. In the case of CCR5, the GPCR to which certain HIV-blocking chemokines (naturally produced small molecules) bind, Euroscreen established a link between this receptor and the entry of viral genetic material into the cell, revealing its specific role in the process of HIV infection.