Proteolix, Inc., was a private

biotechnology Biotechnology is a multidisciplinary field that involves the integration of natural sciences and Engineering Science, engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms and parts thereof for products and services. Specialists ...

company with headquarters in

South San Francisco South San Francisco is a city in San Mateo County, California, United States, on the San Francisco Peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area. The city is colloquially termed "South City". The population was 66,105 at the 2020 census. History P ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. Proteolix was founded in 2003 based on technology developed by co-founders Craig M. Crews (Yale University) and

Raymond J. Deshaies Raymond Joseph Deshaies (born September 25, 1961) is an American biochemist and cell biologist. He is senior vice president of global research at Amgen and a visiting associate at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). Prior to that, ...

(California Institute of Technology). Susan Molineaux and Phil Whitcome joined as co-founders. Proteolix was launched based on an $18.2 million A round comprising investments by Latterell Venture Partners, US Venture Partners, Advanced Technology Ventures, and The Vertical Group. Its lead product candidate,

carfilzomib Carfilzomib, sold under the brand name Kyprolis, is an anti-cancer medication acting as a selective proteasome inhibitor. Chemically, it is a tetrapeptide epoxyketone and an analog of epoxomicin. It was developed by Onyx Pharmaceuticals. The U ...

(PR-171), is a

tetrapeptide A tetrapeptide is a peptide, classified as an oligopeptide, since it only consists of four amino acids joined by peptide bonds. Many tetrapeptides are pharmacologically active, often showing affinity and specificity for a variety of receptors ...

epoxyketone for treating

multiple myeloma Multiple myeloma (MM), also known as plasma cell myeloma and simply myeloma, is a cancer of plasma cells, a type of white blood cell that normally produces antibody, antibodies. Often, no symptoms are noticed initially. As it progresses, bone ...

, a blood cancer. The drug carfilzomib works by preventing

proteasomes Proteasomes are essential protein complexes responsible for the degradation of proteins by proteolysis, a chemical reaction that breaks peptide bonds. Enzymes that help such reactions are called proteases. Proteasomes are found inside all e ...

from breaking down other proteins. Proteolix focused primarily on the proteasome as a therapeutic target. At the time of its sale (see below), the company had two earlier-stage programs, an orally-bioavailable proteasome inhibitor for oncology (PR-047), and an agent preferentially targeting the immuno form of the proteasome (PR-957), with potential utility in areas such as rheumatoid arthritis. At the time of sale, carfilzomib's route of administration was

intravenous Intravenous therapy (abbreviated as IV therapy) is a medical technique that administers fluids, medications and nutrients directly into a person's vein. The intravenous route of administration is commonly used for rehydration or to provide nutr ...

, and the company was exploring its potential utility in multiple myeloma,

Non-Hodgkin lymphoma Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), also known as non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, is a group of blood cancers that includes all types of lymphomas except Hodgkin lymphomas. Symptoms include enlarged lymph nodes, fever, night sweats, weight loss, and tiredn ...

(NHL) and other

cancers Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

. Proteolix was acquired by

Onyx Pharmaceuticals Onyx Pharmaceuticals Inc. has been a biopharmaceutical company headquartered in South San Francisco, California. The company developed and marketed medicines for the treatment of cancer. Onyx was founded in 1992 by Kevin J. Kinsella and Frank M ...

in 2009 for $810 million (nominal value). PR-171 is sold by Onyx Pharmaceuticals as Kyprolis. Onyx renamed PR-047 to "ONX 0912" and PR-957 to "ONX 0914". Onyx Pharmaceuticals is a subsidiary of

Amgen Amgen Inc. (formerly Applied Molecular Genetics Inc.) is an American multinational biopharmaceutical Corporation, company headquartered in Thousand Oaks, California. As one of the world's largest independent biotechnology companies, Amgen has a ...

References

External links

Proteolix's corporate website
Biotechnology companies of the United States Companies based in South San Francisco, California Life sciences industry {{Med-company-stub