Principio is an emerging company founded on the premise that medicine will become more individualized and that we will need better tools to image and treat the patients of tomorrow.

Our technology was developed at the world renown Johns Hopkins University Kimmel Cancer Center by pioneering scientists in the area of nuclear medicine.

We develop and manufacture novel molecular imaging agents and therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals for the treatment of cancer. This field of medicine is known as molecular medicine. Molecular medicine is an emerging field of healthcare that has the power to improve the lives of patients with life-threatening diseases.

We focus on:

• Molecular Imaging Radiopharmaceuticals: Radioactive drugs that target specific proteins or biochemical processes that permit the visualization of disease using PET or SPECT scanners.
  
  
• Therapeutic Radiopharmaceuticals: Radioactive drugs that selectively target cancer cells to deliver lethal cellular radiation for therapeutic benefit. 
  
  
• Near Infrared (NIR) Molecular Imaging Agents: NIR molecules target cancer tissue and provide a real-time image of the tumors during surgery using NIR cameras for precise tumor extraction.

Molecular Imaging Radiopharmaceuticals —

What are the benefits of molecular imaging radiopharmaceutical?

• Taken internally, for example intravenously or orally
  
• External detectors (gamma cameras) capture and form images from the radiation emitted by the radiopharmaceuticals
  
• Unlike a diagnostic X-ray where external radiation is passed through the body to form an image
  
• Nuclear Medicine imaging studies are generally more organ or tissue specific (e.g.: lungs scan, heart scan, bone scan, brain scan, etc.) than those in conventional radiology imaging
• There are nuclear medicine studies that allow imaging of the whole body based on certain cellular receptors or functions.
  Examples are:
  – whole body PET or PET/CT scans,
  – Gallium scans,
  – white blood cell scans
  – MIBG and Octreotide scans
  

Therapeutic Radiopharmaceuticals —

What are the benefits of therapeutic radiopharmaceutical?

• Therapy emit ionizing radiation that travels only a short distance
• Minimizing unwanted side effects and damage to noninvolved organs or nearby structures
• Can be performed as outpatient procedures
• Few side effects from the treatment
• The radiation exposure to the general public can be kept within a safe limit.
• Common Nuclear Medicine therapies include:
  – 131I-sodium iodide for hyperthyroidism and thyroid cancer
     • 90Yttrium-Ibritumomab tiuxetan (Zevalin) and 131Iodine-Tositumomab (Bexxar) for refractory Lymphoma
  – 131I-MIBG (meta-iodobenzylguanidine) for neuroendocrine tumors
  – Samarium-153 or Strontium-89 palliative bone pain treatment
  

Near Infrared (NIR) Molecular Imaging Agents —

What is the benefit of NIR molecular imaging?

• Allows for real time intra operative imaging
• Expedites tumor removal surgeries
• Reduces likelihood of repeating surgical procedures
• Spares peripheral critical tissue structure
• There is a greater likelihood of surgical success

Our focus is on Epstein Barr Virus (EBV) associated tumors, which include most lymphomas, stomach cancers, nasopharyngeal cancers and Karposi sarcoma cancers.

In addition we develop agents for Prostate Cancer, the deadliest form of cancer in men. Every year over 98,000 and 250,000 new patients are diagnosed with EBV associated tumors and prostate cancer, respectively.

Product Development

We are developing three (3) classes of agents to help image, treat and cure cancer.

They include nuclear medicine molecules to image and treat cancers and near infrared molecules to help guide surgeons during tumor extraction procedures.

Molecular Imaging Radiopharmaceuticals:

• Visinol™ for the imaging of EBV associated cancer which include most lymphomas, stomach cancer, nasopharyngeal cancer and AIDS related lymphomas.

• Prostavis™ for the imaging of prostate cancer via a prostate cancer specific receptor.

Therapeutic Radiopharmaceuticals:

• Curinol™ for the molecular radiotherapy of EBV associated cancers.

• Prostara™ for the molecular radiotherapy of prostate cancer via the via a prostate cancer specific receptor.
  

Near Infrared (NIR) Molecular Imaging Agents:

• Nirlux™ for real-time guided surgery of prostate cancer using NIR.

Our revolutionary imaging and therapeutic agents will offer a new beginning to this field of medicine. The future is looking brighter.

Principio
15601 Crabbs Branch Way
Rockville, MD 20855
USA

301.526.5197 (phone)
301.738.0779 (fax)
info@principioinc.com