On October 11, 2023 Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp. (Nasdaq: PHIO), a clinical stage biotechnology company whose proprietary INTASYL RNAi platform technology is designed to make immune cells more effective in killing tumor cells, reported the poster presentation of two key preclinical studies of its INTASYL compound PH-894 at the AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper)-NCI-EORTC AACR-NCI-EORTC (Free AACR-NCI-EORTC Whitepaper) International Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics (EORTC-NCI-AACR) (Free ASGCT Whitepaper) (Free EORTC-NCI-AACR Whitepaper) in Boston, Massachusetts on October 11th -15th (Press release, Phio Pharmaceuticals, OCT 11, 2023, View Source [SID1234635862]).

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The first study shows that melanoma cells treated with its PH-894 compound makes them more recognizable to the immune cells. Specifically, the treatment results in an increase in the tumor marker MART-1 (Melanoma tumor-associated antigen) allowing for better recognition and potentially increased killing by T cells. Local treatment with PH-894 presents a strategy to decrease BRD4 expression and upregulate MART-1 expression to increase immune response to cancer cells while reducing toxicities associated with systemic therapies. This study supports further development of PH-894 for injectable solid tumor indications such as melanoma.

The second study demonstrates the effectiveness of PH-894 as an antitumor cytotoxic agent (directly killing tumor cells). The addition of PH-894 to cells in vitro elicited concentration-associated apoptosis of all human cancer cell lines tested, including head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), breast cancer, lung cancer, glioblastoma, melanoma, colon cancer, ovarian cancer, and cervical cancer.

INTASYL PH-894, a precision self-delivering RNAi therapy, is administered locally and is designed to provide a novel, safer strategy to realize the enormous therapeutic potential of BRD4 inhibition for cancer that has been difficult to attain for small molecule modalities that rely on systemic approaches that generate significant toxicity.

Presentation Details:

Poster Title: INTASYL PH-894 self-delivering RNAi targeting BRD4 enhances the antigenicity of melanoma cells through MART-1 upregulation
Session Date and Time: Saturday, October 14 | 12:30 pm-4:00 pm
Poster Title: INTASYL self-delivering RNAi therapeutic targeting BRD4 elicits on-target apoptosis of human tumor cells
Session Date and Time: Saturday, October 14 | 12:30 pm-4:00 pm