ANGLE PLC (AIM:AGL, OTCQX:ANPCY), a pioneer of liquid biopsy technology, has announced a significant contract win with Artios Pharma.
Under the deal ANGLE's bespoke DNA Damage Response (DDR) assays will be deployed in a phase I cancer clinical trial led by Artios, slated to conclude by year-end 2024.
As part of the collaboration, ANGLE has developed two unique immunofluorescence assays using its Parsortix system to detect key biomarkers in circulating tumour cells (CTCs).
Historically, monitoring these biomarkers was hampered by the limited and non-reproducible availability of tumour tissue biopsy samples, but ANGLE's assays present an alternate solution by sourcing CTCs from liquid biopsies.
This novel approach will enable Artios to track treatment responses and pharmacodynamic effects of new DDR drugs via longitudinal monitoring of biomarker expression.
The successful completion of the DDR assays, a technical tour de force boasting both high sensitivity and specificity, opens the door for their potential use in larger, subsequent clinical trials and possibly additional compounds in Artios' pipeline.
Moreover, this development reinforces ANGLE's value proposition to an expanding market of drug developers investigating the DDR pathway.
According to data from clinicaltrials.gov, there are currently 105 drugs in the DDR pipeline, with roughly 123,000 patients enrolled in active trials.
The market potential is substantial, with the global value of DDR therapeutics set to grow from $3.5bn in 2020 to a projected $24.8bn by 2030, representing an impressive compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 21.3%.
In a statement, Andrew Newland, ANGLE's Founder and CEO, said: "These new assays also provide an important addition to our pharma services menu where our unique solution has already generated a high level of interest from new potential customers."
No financial details were given.