Date: 2013-02-05
Type of information: Grant
Company: Ability Pharmaceuticals (Spain)
Investors: INNPACTO-2012 Collaborative Program (Spain)
Amount: € 1.2 million
Funding type: grant
Planned used: The grant will fund the first-in-man phase Ib clinical trial of ABTL0812, a Lipid Analog Therapeutic molecule in advanced cancer patients with refractory solid tumor. This Lipid Analog Therapeutic molecule is nearing the end of preclinical development, with anticipated IMPD/CTA filing in April 2013. The Phase Ib clinical trial will start in spring 2013 in advanced cancer patients with refractory solid tumors. In animal models of immunosuppressed mice with lung and pancreatic cancer xenografts, after a 4 weeks treatment the molecule reduced tumor growth by 70% and complete tumor growth arrest was observed in 10% of treated mice. ABTL0812 has shown efficacy equal or superior to standards of care, such as docetaxel, erlotinib and gemcitabine, with lower toxicity and fewer adverse events. ABTL0812 interferes with two key cellular processes: i) the inhibition of akt and the mTORC1 and mTORC2 pathways which are involved in protein synthesis and cell survival, and ii) DNA synthesis through the inhibition of the gene expression of dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR), needed for cell proliferation.
Others: * On February 5, 2013, Ability Pharmaceuticals, a privately held biopharmaceutical company, announced that it was awarded a 36 month 1.2 Million Euros grant under the INNPACTO-2012 Collaborative Program from the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness of the Government of Spain. A substantial part of the grant will be devoted to finance the first-in-man phase Ib clinical trial for ABTL0812. Ability Pharmaceuticals is the leader of this collaborative program that involves other Catalan companies and research institutions, including the Autonomous University of Barcelona, the University of Barcelona and the IDIBAPS research institute in Barcelona. The consortium has been funded with € 2.2 Million.
Therapeutic area: Cancer - Oncology
