Apogenix's APG350 Effectively Induces Apoptosis of Tumour Cells via TRAIL Pathway Independent of Fc-Gamma Cross-Linking

Apogenix, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, has announced that the data published in the December issue of Molecular Cancer Therapeutics demonstrate effective antitumour activity of the company's drug candidate APG350, an activator for TRAIL receptors. The publication shows that APG350's novel molecular structure allows for potent induction of apoptosis of tumour cells independent of the innate immune system, thus overcoming the limitations of other TRAIL receptor agonists.

"Due to the potential role of the TRAIL pathway in the treatment of cancer, there have been several attempts to develop substances for therapeutic use that utilise this pathway," said Harald Fricke, MD, Chief Medical Officer and Chief Operating Officer of Apogenix. "However, to date, none of these approaches has been successful in clinical trials. APG350 was designed to optimise both the activation of TRAIL receptors on tumour cells, as well as the pharmacokinetic properties of the substance. Its unique molecular structure ensures effectiveness without the need for cross-linking via Fc-gamma receptors on immune cells. As such cross-linking cannot be effectively achieved in the human body, previous TRAIL receptor agonists have ultimately failed to show antitumour efficacy in clinical studies."

"In the different colon carcinoma animal models that we examined, treatment with APG350 resulted in efficient induction of tumour-specific apoptosis and consequently the complete remission of the tumours. Because activation of the TRAIL signaling pathway is possible in many tumour types, APG350 has the potential for wide use in oncology. We are convinced that this novel drug design concept will be successful in clinical applications," Harald Fricke concluded.

The publication titled "APG350 Induces Superior Clustering of TRAIL Receptors and Shows Therapeutic Antitumor Efficacy Independent of Cross-Linking via Fc-gamma Receptors" will appear in the print edition of Molecular Cancer Therapeutics tomorrow. The data are the result of a close collaboration of Apogenix with Prof. Simone Fulda, MD, from the University Hospital Frankfurt, Germany, and Prof. Peter Hohenberger, MD, from the University Medical Centre Mannheim, Germany. The electronic version of the publication is already available to subscribers of Molecular Cancer Therapeutics through the website of the American Association for Cancer Research.