On April 12, 2021 Bio-Path Holdings, Inc., (NASDAQ: BPTH), a biotechnology company leveraging its proprietary DNAbilize antisense RNAi nanoparticle technology to develop a portfolio of targeted nucleic acid cancer drugs, reported the presentation of a poster highlighting preclinical BP1002 data at the 2021 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting (Press release, Bio-Path Holdings, APR 12, 2021, View Source [SID1234578008]).
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The poster, titled "The combination of liposomal Bcl-2 antisense oligonucleotide (BP1002) with decitabine is efficacious in venetoclax-resistant cells," was presented virtually by Dr. Maria Gagliardi, Research Scientist at Bio-Path Holdings.
"We are particularly pleased to have these preclinical results of the BP1002 plus decitabine combination against venetoclax-resistant cells highlighted in a poster before an audience of the world’s leading cancer researchers at this important scientific meeting," stated Peter Nielsen, President and Chief Executive Officer of Bio-Path Holdings. "We look forward to filing a second Investigational New Drug (IND) application for BP1002 and to initiating a clinical study in combination with decitabine in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients who have relapsed from venetoclax-based treatments."
Venetoclax, an FDA-approved Bcl-2 inhibitor, is indicated for hematologic malignancies. However, venetoclax resistance among these AML patients is a growing problem. A recent study found that AML patients who had relapsed from frontline venetoclax-based treatment were also resistant to salvage therapy and had a median survival of less than 3 months1. Thus, novel treatment approaches for these most vulnerable patients are urgently needed.
BP1002 targets the protein Bcl-2, which is responsible for driving cell survival in up to 60% of all cancers. High expression of Bcl-2 has been correlated with poor prognosis for patients diagnosed with AML. Prior preclinical studies have shown BP1002 to be a potent inhibitor against the Bcl-2 target, and the Company believes that its benign safety profile should enable BP1002 combination therapy with approved agents.
The data presented in the AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) poster show that venetoclax-resistant cells are sensitive to the inhibitory effects of BP1002 combined with decitabine, suggesting that this combination is a potential treatment for patients who have relapsed from frontline venetoclax-based therapies.