The novel anticancer activity of these analogs, developed by scientists at MD Anderson, relates to their ability to selectively degrade key proteins that are involved in tumor cell proliferation and survival. So far this degradation appears to be specific for C-MYC, BCR-ABL and JAK2, all important targets for a wide range of tumors.
“We are excited about the discovery of this novel class of drugs,” said Dr Moshe Talpaz, one of the inventors and a professor of experimental therapeutics at MD Anderson. “What we are most excited about is this novel mechanism that causes the degradation of important cancer causing and cancer driving proteins in a way that appears to be specific for these few key targets. It is our priority to get one of these compounds into the clinic as soon as possible.”