G2Gbio Inc. debuted on the Korea Exchange with a ₩52.2 billion (US$37.7 million) IPO Aug. 14. Nearly half of the funds raised will be used to expand Cheongju-si, South Korea-based G2Gbio’s manufacturing plants and help mass produce sustained-release injectable drug products such as GB-5001, its lead candidate in development as a once-monthly formulation of donepezil (Aricept; Eisai Co. Ltd.) for Alzheimer’s disease.
Shanghai Qilu Pharmaceutical Research and Development Centre Ltd. has synthesized Werner syndrome ATP-dependent helicase (WRN; RECQ3; RECQL2) inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer.
Pilatus Biosciences Inc. has announced a clinical trial collaboration with F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd. in support of Pilatus’ upcoming first-in-human phase I trial evaluating PLT-012 in combination with atezolizumab in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).
Evolveimmune Therapeutics Inc. has gained IND clearance from the U.S. FDA for EVOLVE-104, a novel trispecific T-cell engager for the treatment of solid tumors. The company will begin a phase I trial this year.
Colorectal cancer is among the most common malignant tumor types and the second leading cause of tumor-related deaths worldwide. Tumor necrosis factor α-induced protein 8-like protein 2 (TIPE2) is a protein member of the TIPE family and highly expressed in immune cells. The prognostic impact and the relationship with tumor immunity of TIPE2 plus other immune markers such as CD8, CD20 and CD66b were evaluated in colorectal cancer by researchers from First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University and collaborators.
Suzhou Zion Pharma Technology Co Ltd. has identified KRAS inhibitors, in particular GTPase KRAS G12D mutant and/or G13D mutant, reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer.
The Ohio State University has synthesized dual specificity protein kinase TTK (MPS1; MPS1L1) inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer.
Ubiquitin-specific protease 14 (USP14) is known to play important roles in the development and progression of cancer, including colorectal cancer, since it modulates proteasomal function and cellular proteostasis. In the present study, investigators from Zhejiang University and collaborators demonstrated that the USP14 inhibitor AKOS, a Chikungunya virus inhibitor, performed well as a colorectal cancer therapeutic both in vitro and in vivo.
It is hardly news that tumor cells, compared to healthy ones, show metabolic reprogramming that accelerates the production of energy and biosynthetic precursors to support rapid growth. What is newly discovered, in contrast, is the possibility that hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tumors that are resistant to systemic therapies show further metabolic reprogramming beyond cells that are therapy sensitive, leading them to produce and store even greater amounts of energy.