Aphios
Awarded STTR Grant from NCI for Nanosomal Formulation of
Novel, Nontoxic Vitamin D Analog for HormoneRefractory Prostate
Cancer
September
18, 2007 - Aphios Corporation
today announced that Aphios and its university collaborator
Boston University Medical School were awarded a Phase I
Small Business Technology Transfer Grant (STTR) from the
National Cancer Institue (NCI) to develop a novel, nontoxic
Vitamin D analog for hormone-refractory prostate cancer.
The new molecular entity (NME) being developed, APH-M109,
is an analog of the naturally occurring Vitamin D hormone
that is very toxic at therapeutic concentrations. APH-M109
is designed to covalently link the bioactive hormone inside
the ligand-binding pocket of the nuclear Vitamin D receptor
(VDR), which will significantly reduce catabolic degradation.
As a result, less compound will be required to have an anti-tumor
effect resulting in reduced toxicity. In vitro studies have
shown that APH-M109 has strong anti-proliferative effects
on several human prostate cancer cells. Additionally, it
induced apoptosis in these cells. Furthermore, through in
vivo studies, APH-M109 produced strong anti-tumor effect
in athymic nude mice with hormone refractory prostate cancer
at a dose approximately 10 times less than the parent vitamin
D hormone without significant toxicity.
Phospholipid nanosomes are being used to encapsulate in
order to further APH-M109’s translational potential
as a therapeutic agent for prostate cancer. Phospholipid
nanosomes are small, uniform liposomes. Phospholipid nanosomes
will prolong APH-M109 circulation time, further reduce any
systemic toxicity and enhance its therapeutic index. Phospholipid
nanosomes will be manufactured utilizing proprietary green
nanotechnologies (US, Japanese and International Patents).
Prostate cancer is the most prevalent cancer among men;
and the second leading cause of cancer death among men in
the US. According to the NCI, there are approximately 1.7
million men living in the US with a diagnosis of prostate
cancer. Approximately 230,000 new cases of prostate cancer
will be diagnosed and 29,000 men will die of the disease
each year in the US. Although prostate cancer mostly affects
elderly men, the number of younger men with prostatic carcinoma
is significant. In addition, general increase in longevity
has further emphasized the need for effective treatment
of prostate cancer, especially for prostate cancers that
are androgen-insensitive and metastatic.
Aphios Corporation has an exclusive license to APH-M109
(US Patent Pending) from Boston University Medical School.
Aphios Corporation (www.aphios.com) is a biopharmaceutical
company that is developing enabling technology platforms
and enhanced therapeutic products for the prevention and
treatment of certain cancers, infectious diseases and CNS
disorders.
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