30 January 2015 - Biopharmaceutical company MediciNova (Nasdaq GM:MNOV) revealed on Thursday that it has received a new patent from the Japanese Patent Office for MN-029 (denibulin) di-hydrochloride for the future development for solid tumor cancers.

The company added that the patent will expire no earlier than July 2032.

According to the company, the allowed claims cover a compound, pharmaceutical composition and method of treating certain cell proliferation diseases, including solid tumors, based on denibulin di-hydrochloride.

MN-029 is a novel, small molecule vascular disrupting agent (VDA) being developed for the treatment of solid tumor cancers.

Several preclinical pharmacology studies have assessed the mechanism of action and anti-tumor activity of MN-029 in vivo in rodent models of breast adenocarcinoma, colon carcinoma, lung carcinoma and KHT sarcoma. These studies suggest that MN-029 acts quickly and is rapidly cleared from the body, which may reduce the potential for some adverse effects commonly associated with chemotherapy. In two Phase I clinical studies, MN-029 was well-tolerated at doses that reduced tumor blood flow, concluded the company.