Edmonton, Alberta, Canada/June 13, 2023- Pacylex Pharmaceuticals today announced recent research on N-myristoyltransferase inhibition (NMTi) will be presented at two upcoming European conferences, the European Hematology Association’s EHA2023 Hybrid Congress June 8-11 and the European Association for Cancer Research (EACR) June 12-15. These results expand the understanding of how NMT inhibition selectively kills cancer cells.
Further data on identifying cancer cells likely to respond to NMT inhibition therapy will also be included in the EACR presentation June 12-15 where details of a gene expression signature set, MISS-91 (Myristoylation Inhibitors Sensitivity Signature), will be described. MISS-91 predicts multiple cancers that are sensitive to PCLX-001, a first-in-class small molecule NMT inhibitor, including both hematologic and solid tumors, at concentrations at which normal tissues would be insensitive.
“Understanding the mechanism of action by which NMT inhibition selectively kills cancer cells is critically important,” said Luc Berthiaume, CSO of Pacylex. “Predicting the cancer types with MISS-91 that may respond best to PCLX-001 would enable it to be used where it can do the most for patients.”
The European Hematology Association’s EHA2023 Hybrid Congress focuses on clinical research and practice and basic and translational research in the field of hematology and will take place in Frankfurt, Germany from June 8-11, 2023, continuing virtually through June 15, 2023.
Details are as follows:
- Title: N-Myristoylation Inhibition Abrogates Oxidative Phosphorylation to Target Acute Myeloid Leukemia Stem Cells
- Abstract number: P465
- Presenting Author: Erwan Beauchamp, Ph.D., Pacylex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
- Session Data and Time: Friday, June 9 from 18:00 to 19:00 CEST
- Full abstract information can be found here.
The 2023 Annual Congress of the European Association for Cancer Research (EACR 2023) covers basic, preclinical and translational cancer research across a wide breadth of topics, and takes place 12-15 June 2023, in Torino, Italy.
Details are as follows:
- Title: Identification of a gene signature for cancers sensitive to N-Myristoylation inhibition
- Abstract number: 1451
- Presenting Author: Erwan Beauchamp, Ph.D., Pacylex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
- Session: Posters: Experimental / Molecular Therapeutics, Pharmacogenomics
- Session Data and Time: Wednesday, 14 June 2023 from 11:00 to 18:00 CEST
- EACR 2023 abstracts will be published in an online supplement to the journal Molecular Oncology.
PCLX-001 is a first-in-class, oral, small molecule N-myristoyltransferase (NMT) inhibitor being developed to treat patients with leukemia and lymphoma. PCLX-001 selectively kills cancer cells in vitro and has been shown to regress hematologic malignancies and inhibit the growth of lung and breast cancer tumors in animal models. PCLX-001 appears to be particularly effective against Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) stem cells in animal disease models.
About Pacylex Pharmaceuticals
Pacylex is a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, targeting hematologic and solid cancers with a first-in-class, oral, once daily investigational therapeutic, PCLX-001. Pacylex has a US Subsidiary in the San Francisco Bay area. PCLX-001 is the lead drug in a new class of NMT inhibitors, enabling Pacylex to exploit NMTs as new clinical targets for cancer treatment. Pacylex is conducting a multi-center Phase 1 multiple ascending dose study in Canada in patients with R/R NHL and advanced solid tumors, and a Phase 2a dose expansion in patients with R/R NHL. The US Department of Defense is supporting the initial clinical investigation of PCLX-001 in patients with AML. The FDA has granted PCLX-001 both Orphan Drug Designation and Fast Track Designation for AML. Pacylex received support from an Alberta Innovates AICE grant in 2020, and the research leading to this breakthrough was supported in part by the Alberta Cancer Foundation and the Cure Cancer Foundation.
