The ALS Association has announced the recipients of its 2025 Hoffman ALS Clinical Trial Awards. These research grants, worth up to $1 million each, support early-phase trials that generate critical data to accelerate the development of new amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) treatments.
Immuneering Corp.’s phase IIa data from an ongoing trial in pancreatic cancer disclosed June 17 impressed Wall Street and brought renewed attention to the perennially difficult indication, at which drug developers continue to fling themselves with varied mechanisms.
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is among the most lethal cancers and needs innovative therapeutic solutions. Patients with PDAC have a 5-year survival rate of about 12%. To address this need, researchers have developed a Drosophila PDAC model harboring the genetic alterations in the KRAS, CDKN2A, TP53 and SMAD4 genes (4-hit model), which accounts for the worst and most aggressive PDAC with lower survival rates.
GSK plc’s Blenrep (belantamab mafodotin) is heading back to the market three years after being withdrawn, with the EMA’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use recommending approval of the antibody-drug conjugate in combination therapy for the treatment of adults with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.
Kinnate Biopharma Inc. has synthesized mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase (MAP2K; MEK; MAPKK) inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer.
Kinnate Biopharma Inc. and affiliated organizations recently reported preclinical data for the novel brain-penetrant combination therapy using the MEK inhibitor KIN-7136 and the RAF inhibitor KIN-8391, as a novel therapeutic strategy for the treatment of melanoma brain metastasis.
Genetic alterations in FAT1, YAP1 or WWTR1 genes are commonly seen in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients. Targeting Hippo and MAPK pathways in combination has proven effective in preclinical models of HNSCC.
It was hypothesized that the MEK1/2 inhibitor ATR-002 could reduce inflammation and clear Staphylococcus aureus infection during cystic fibrosis, thus potentially showing a dual effect.
Even though the treatment options that exist for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are growing, the clinical outcome of patients is still unfavorable. In AML dysregulation of the tyrosine kinase receptors, including RAS, RAF, MEK and ERK, and of the Aurora kinase family (AURK) exists, are both tied to AML development and progression.
It is known that an abnormal activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway is involved in tumor formation and progression, where MEK1 and MEK2 are the key proteins involved in this pathway. At the ongoing ASCO meeting in Chicago, Pasithea Therapeutics Corp. presented data on PAS-004, a macrocyclic MEK inhibitor for the potential treatment of cancer.
