Company acquires exclusive rights to HIV antibody

Rockville, Md.-based Human Genome Sciences on Monday acquired exclusive rights to an antibody that could be used to slow HIV replication in the bodies of HIV-positive people, The Baltimore Sun reports. Under a licensing deal with Angenix, a California pharmaceutical company, HGS gained exclusive rights to the CCR5 mAb antibody, which prevents cellular HIV infection by jamming a key receptor on the surface of immune system cells that HIV must latch on to in order to enter the cells. A Phase I clinical trial of the antibody is planned to begin later this year.