Lipovaxin

'Lipovaxin' is a complex multi-component vaccine designed to deliver a full suite of cancer antigens, together with an appropriate stimulatory signal, to dendritic cells. Dendritic cells are specialised antigen presenting cells that play a critical role in stimulating a cell-mediated immune response of the type necessary to attack tumours.

The approach used by Lipotek to construct a vaccine from tumour cell lines and deliver the cell-based vaccine to dendritic cells with the appropriate maturation signal is unique. Lipovaxin is the first of what is expected to be a series of cancer vaccines based on this platform technology. This powerful but complex multi-component vaccine strategy also has potential applications in tuberculosis and malaria vaccine developments.

The first selected target for Lipovaxin is malignant melanoma for which a Phase I clinical trial has been initiated.