In a 22-day study with an aggressively growing pancreatic tumor cell line, Noxxon researchers showed that tumor growth in a xenograft mouse model could be dramatically slowed by treatment with specially formulated NOX-A50, a Spiegelmer developed against a transcription factor known to be involved in the development of many cancers. Animals that received a control Spiegelmer exhibited uninhibited tumor growth.
Spiegelmers are biostable aptamers, novel substances based on mirror image nucleic acids. Thanks to their structural characteristics, Spiegelmers are extremely resistant to degradation and not immunogenic – a new generation of improved therapeutics.
“The inclusion of intracellular targets further broadens the clinical utility of Noxxon’s Spiegelmer technology,” commented Thomas Klein, CEO of Noxxon. “This is another distinguishing factor, which, in combination with our molecules’ outstanding biostability, gives us a competitive advantage especially in comparison to antibodies.”
“Our findings demonstrate that Spiegelmers have the potential to be powerful agents in the fight against cancer,” he continued.