Q BioMed Inc. (OTCQB:QBIO) has announced a new publication in the Frontiers of Oncology journal supporting the efficacy and further development of its Uttroside-B (Utt-B) chemotherapeutic to treat liver cancer.
In the initial Scientific Reports study, Q BioMed said researchers showed that in animal models Utt-B was 10 times more cytotoxic to the HepG2 liver cancer cell line than sorafenib, the only drug approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for liver cancer.
The company said Utt-B drastically shrank tumors in mice bearing human liver cancer xenografts. In addition, in pre-clinical experiments, Utt-B induced cytotoxicity in all liver cancer cell lines, and researchers were also able to confirm its biological safety, in both in vitro and in vivo studies.
READ: Q BioMed announces initial $500,000 order for Strontium89 injections in China
The company’s innovation has been granted patents in the US, Canada, Japan, and South Korea and has been conferred 'Orphan Drug' status against Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) by the FDA. HCC constitutes 90% of all liver cancer cases worldwide.
Q BioMed noted that the present study reveals that besides causing apoptosis, Utt-B also induces autophagy, a self-degradation process occurring inside cells that removes unnecessary or dysfunctional components and recycles the cellular components, both in liver cancer cells and in liver tumors.
The team investigated whether Utt-B-induced autophagic response is complementing or contradicting its apoptotic cell death program in HCC. They found that inhibition of autophagy using the antimalarial drug chloroquine (Cqn) significantly enhances the antitumor efficacy of Utt-B in cell culture systems and in an animal tumor model of human HCC.
Taken together, Q BioMed said these results suggest that the antitumor effect of Utt-B against HCC can be further enhanced by blocking autophagy. And furthermore, Cqn, a clinically approved drug, if repurposed and used in combination with Utt-B, can improve the therapeutic efficacy of Utt-B against HCC.
"Having successfully completed a very challenging synthesis program, we are now finalizing manufacturing for tox studies,” said Q BioMed CEO Denis Corin in a statement. “This data is another validation of the potential of this molecule that we hope will ultimately provide a powerful therapeutic for use on its own or in combination with others to improve the outcomes for these patients. We are looking forward to moving this towards the clinic and possible partnership opportunities in the near term."
Liver cancer incidence rates have more than tripled since 1980, while the death rates have more than doubled during this time. More than 800,000 people are diagnosed with this cancer each year worldwide and it accounts for more than 700,000 deaths annually.
Contact the author: patrick@proactiveinvestors.com
Follow him on Twitter @PatrickMGraham