Glossary
The language of intracellular nanobodies
Short, extractable definitions written so answer engines and people can quote them accurately.
- Nanobody
- A single-domain antibody (VHH) derived from camelid heavy-chain antibodies. Nanobodies are much smaller than conventional IgG antibodies, typically around 12–15 kDa for the domain itself; PHP53-nb is reported at ~17 kDa including its integrated payload.
- p53 / TP53
- p53 is a transcription factor that can halt the cell cycle or induce apoptosis when DNA is damaged. TP53 is the gene that encodes it. Loss or mutation of p53 is among the most common events in human cancer.
- Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC)
- A breast-cancer subtype that lacks estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and HER2 amplification. TNBC is typically more aggressive, has fewer targeted treatment options, and is enriched for TP53 mutations.
- 3-NAntC
- PHP Biotech’s p53-reactivating peptide payload. Therapeutic peptides are often unstable in plasma; 3-NAntC is genetically engrafted into the GEN01-AD nanobody so it can reach tumor cells as a single recombinant biologic.
- GEN01-AD
- A proprietary humanized camelid nanobody platform engineered for intracellular peptide delivery. It is the chassis for PHP53-nb and a reusable engine for additional payloads and multi-specific designs.
- Endocytosis
- The process by which a cell engulfs extracellular material in vesicles. PHP53-nb is described as entering tumor cells through clathrin-coated vesicles, then leaking into the cytoplasm.
- Apoptosis
- Programmed cell death. Reactivating p53 in a cancer cell is intended to restore this fail-safe, causing the malignant cell to self-destruct rather than divide indefinitely.
- Humanization
- Engineering a non-human antibody fragment so its sequence more closely resembles human antibodies, reducing immunogenicity risk. PHP53-nb is a humanized camelid nanobody.
- CHO cells
- Chinese hamster ovary cells, the workhorse expression system for licensed biologics. PHP53-nb is produced in CHO with standard bioprocessing, supporting a conventional CMC path.
- IND-enabling studies
- The package of pharmacology, toxicology, manufacturing, and quality data required to file an Investigational New Drug application and begin human trials.