Calando announces development of second siRNA cancer drug

Calando’s first siRNA therapeutic, CALAA-01, which targets the M2 subunit of ribonucleotide reductase, is currently in a Phase I clinical trial.

Calando intends to move CALAA-02 into the clinic in 2009 to demonstrate the ability of the Rondel delivery system to rapidly enable the pathway from target identification through preclinical development to clinical application of siRNA therapeutics.

According to the company, the intracellular target for CALAA-02 is HIF-2alpha, or hypoxia inducible factor-2 alpha. HIF-2alpha is over-expressed in a number of solid tumors and is critical for many aspects of tumorigenesis, such as metastasis, angiogenesis, tumor cell proliferation, and tumor response to radiation. HIF-2alpha has been difficult to target using traditional drugs but is said to be effectively targeted by the proprietary siRNA in CALAA-02.

Jeremy Heidel, chief scientific officer of siRNA delivery at Calando, said: “We are encouraged by the results obtained thus far with our proprietary anti-HIF-2alpha siRNA and are excited to pursue preclinical development of CALAA-02. We expect our experience with CALAA-01 will simplify and accelerate CALAA-02 development.”