In an article published today in the journal PLOS ONE, an international team of scientists led by Antibe Therapeutics Inc.’s ("Antibe") Chief Scientific Officer, John Wallace, has reported the remarkable ability of Antibe’s anti-inflammatory drug, ATB-346, to prevent and reverse tumorigenesis (tumour development) in mice that carry the same genetic mutation (called “APCmin”) as found in over 80% of humans with colon cancer.
The team demonstrated that once-a-day treatment of the cancer-prone mice with ATB-346 for 2 weeks completely prevented the formation of intestinal polyps, a precursor of tumours. Moreover, a one-week treatment with ATB-346 after polyps had already developed in the colon resulted in their complete resolution. Dr. Christian Jobin, a leading cancer researcher at the University of Florida, remarked “The ability of short-term treatment with ATB-346 to resolve already-established colonic polyps is very impressive, with exciting clinical implications.” ATB-346 was much more effective than naproxen, producing significant beneficial effects at one-tenth the dose. Naproxen, but not ATB-346, caused damage in the intestines of the mice.
Colon and intestinal cancer are frequently associated with alterations in the patient’s genes and it is the resulting changes in cell replication in these tissues that predispose the patients to cancer. The research team examined the expression of over 25,000 genes in normal and APCmin mice, and identified 20 genes that were expressed at higher than normal levels in the colon of the cancer-prone mice. Treatment with ATB-346 for one week resulted in a return to normal of the expression of 18 of these 20 genes, while naproxen treatment corrected the expression of only 7 of the genes. Dr. Samuel Asfaha, a cancer specialist at Western University (London, Ontario), commented “The observation that ATB-346 could rapidly reverse 90% of the gene expression changes contributing to tumorigenesis in these mice, and at low doses, is very encouraging with respect to the potential use of this drug for prevention and reversal of tumour development in humans”.
This research was a collaborative effort of a group of researchers from Canada (University of Calgary; McMaster University), the United Kingdom (Imperial College; William Harvey Research Institute), Italy (University of Naples), Brazil (Universidade Camilo Castelo Branco) and the USA (Mount Sinai Hospital), and was supported by funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. The article can be found at: https://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0147289
The ability of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) to reduce the incidence of several types of cancer, and in particular cancers of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, has been recognized for many years. However, the use of NSAIDs for this purpose is limited by the significant GI bleeding and ulceration these drugs can cause. ATB-346 is a hydrogen sulfide-releasing derivative of a commonly used NSAID (naproxen). In animal studies, ATB-346 exhibits more potent anti-inflammatory effects than naproxen, and produces negligible GI damage.
About Antibe Therapeutics Inc. (TSXV: ATE, OTCQX: ATBPF)
Antibe develops safer medicines for pain and inflammation. Antibe’s technology involves linking a hydrogen sulfide-releasing molecule to an existing drug to produce a patented, improved medicine. Antibe’s lead drug ATB-346 targets the global need for a safer non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) for chronic pain and inflammation. ATB-352, the second drug in Antibe’s pipeline, targets the urgent global need for a safer analgesic for treating severe acute pain, while ATB-340 is a GI-safe derivative of aspirin. www.antibethera.com.
Antibe’s subsidiary, Citagenix Inc. (Citagenix), is a leader in the sales and marketing of tissue regenerative products servicing the orthopedic and dental marketplaces. Since its inception in 1997, Citagenix has become the largest source of knowledge and experience in the Canadian medical device industry. Citagenix Inc. is active in 15 countries, operating in Canada through its direct sales teams, and internationally via a network of distributor partnerships. www.citagenix.com.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) and no stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release nor approved or disapproved of the information contained herein.
Forward Looking Information
This news release includes certain forward-looking statements which may include, but are not limited to, the development of ATB-346 and other drugs and the addition of products to the company's product line. Any statements contained herein that are not statements of historical facts may be deemed to be forward-looking, including those identified by the expressions "will", "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect", "intend", and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance, or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied in this news release. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in this news release include, but are not limited to, risks associated with drug development generally, and not obtaining future financing on adequate terms, or at all. Antibe Therapeutics Inc. assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements except as required by applicable law.
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