On April 28, 2025 Genprex, Inc. ("Genprex" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: GNPX), a clinical-stage gene therapy company focused on developing life-changing therapies for patients with cancer and diabetes, reported it has signed an exclusive patent license agreement with NYU Langone Health related to the drug candidate, Reqorsa Gene Therapy (quaratusugene ozeplasmid) (Press release, Genprex, APR 28, 2025, View Source [SID1234652232]). The therapy is under investigation as a potential treatment for mesothelioma. The subject patent is co-owned by Genprex and NYU Langone Health, and the license provides Genprex with patent exclusivity.
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"We are pleased to expand our robust oncology franchise, intellectual property portfolio and research program for REQORSA to continue exploring how it may serve as a therapeutic treatment for some of the most difficult to treat cancers and diseases," said Thomas Gallagher, Senior Vice President of Intellectual Property and Licensing. "We believe REQORSA has the potential to treat mesothelioma, and this license agreement positions Genprex to expand its clinical development pipeline with future clinical studies that are within the scope of the licensed patent."
Expression of TUSC2 is downregulated in 84% of mesotheliomas. TUSC2 is the tumor suppressor gene used in REQORSA. Research collaborators at NYU presented positive preclinical data from a study of REQORSA for the treatment of mesothelioma at the 2024 EORTC-NCI-AACR (Free EORTC-NCI-AACR Whitepaper) Symposium on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics.
In this study, four Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma (MPM) cell lines and tert-transformed mesothelial LP9 cells were treated with REQORSA and control liposomes for 48h. Treated cells were then evaluated for TUSC2 expression by semi quantitative RT-PCR, Western blot analysis, and functional assays including cell proliferation, invasion, and apoptosis.
The researchers demonstrated that REQORSA treatment resulted in a significant decrease in cell proliferation, cell invasion, and a significant increase in cell apoptosis in all four MPM cell lines. Data also demonstrated potent tumor suppressive activity of the TUSC2 gene delivered by REQORSA, and thus, its re-expression could serve as a potential therapeutic strategy for the treatment of MPM.
In 2024, Genprex announced the formation of its Mesothelioma Clinical Advisory Board to support the Company’s preclinical mesothelioma oncology program. The Board is comprised of four world-renown researchers from major research institutions specializing in the treatment of mesothelioma.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, mesothelioma is a cancer that forms in the thin tissue that lines many internal organs, called the mesothelium. The most common kind of mesothelioma forms in the tissue around the lungs, called the pleura. This is called pleural mesothelioma, which accounts for 80-90% of all mesothelioma diagnoses. Approximately 3,000 new cases of mesothelioma are diagnosed each year in the U.S., and there are approximately 2,500 mesothelioma-related deaths each year in the U.S. The life expectancy for pleural mesothelioma is 18 months, and the 3-year survival rate with treatment for pleural mesothelioma is 23%.
About Reqorsa Gene Therapy
REQORSA (quaratusugene ozeplasmid) consists of a plasmid containing the TUSC2 gene encapsulated in non-viral lipid-based nanoparticles in a lipoplex form (the Company’s Oncoprex Delivery System), which has a positive charge. REQORSA is injected intravenously and specifically targets cancer cells. REQORSA is designed to deliver the functioning TUSC2 gene to negatively charged cancer cells while minimizing uptake by normal tissue. Laboratory studies conducted at MD Anderson show that the uptake of TUSC2 in tumor cells in vitro after REQORSA treatment was 10 to 33 times the uptake in normal cells.