BERWYN, PA — Chester County-based biotech company, Panavance Therapeutics Inc., has announced the recent publication of positive data in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences about the anti-tumor activity of misetionamide, a tumor cell selective drug, in BRAF-mutated melanoma cell lines.
The research, led by Prof. Thilo Gambichler, former Head of the Skin Cancer Center at Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany, revealed that misetionamide could be a promising add-on therapy for BRAF-mutated melanomas, which account for approximately 50% of all melanomas.
Misetionamide works by disrupting cancer cell energy metabolism, leading to cancer cell death while leaving normal cells unaffected. It targets at least three key enzymes in the aerobic glycolysis pathway as well as downstream effects on other enzymes, transcription factors, and tumor suppressor genes. This inhibition greatly curbs ATP production for cancer cells, leading to oxidative, metabolic, and hypoxic stresses within the cancer cell.
“The results demonstrated that misetionamide is able to downregulate the gene and protein expression of aberrant tumorigenic pathways in melanoma cell lines and could represent a promising therapy for tumors such as melanoma,” said Prof. Gambichler.
This study adds to the growing body of evidence supporting the potential of misetionamide in cancer treatment. The drug has already shown promising anti-tumor activity in Merkel cell carcinoma cells and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma cell lines.
In this latest study, three melanoma cell lines and one primary melanocyte cell line were exposed to different doses of misetionamide. All three melanoma cell lines showed a dose-dependent response during testing, with proliferation and viability drastically reduced by a misetionamide concentration of 500 μmol/L.
This research was supported by Panavance Therapeutics, further demonstrating the company’s commitment to pioneering new treatments and advancing cancer therapy. As this drug continues to show promise in preclinical studies, the Chester County community can take pride in the impactful work being carried out by one of its local biotech firms.
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