Ligand to develop contrast with low renal toxicity

Pharmaceutical developer Ligand Pharmaceuticals announced that it intends to develop a line of injectable medical imaging contrast agents with lower renal toxicity than existing agents on the market.

The company said it plans to base the agents on its patented Captisol technology, as well as on intellectual property it has accessed through its acquisition of Verrow Pharmaceuticals this month. Captisol is based on a specialized form of cyclodextrin that plays a role in protecting kidneys from the damaging effects of contrast.

A research study cited by the company found that a Captisol-enabled version of the x-ray contrast agent iohexol (Omnipaque, GE Healthcare) prevented nephrotoxicity by more than 50% in animal models. The company believes that developing a version of iohexol based on Captisol would enable it to address a significant market opportunity.

Ligand said it intends to move a product toward a proof-of-concept phase and then license or sell its technology for further research and commercialization.