Moleculin Biotech Inc (NASDAQ:MBRX) recently announced that it will provide the needed support to enable the start of clinical studies for its new drug application at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, for treatment of brain tumor condition or adult glioblastoma.
Moleculin is focused on developing anti-cancer drugs in which some are based on the license agreements with the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. According to Moleculin’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Robert Shepard, the new drug WP1066 is capable of stimulating a regular immune response and directly kills the tumor cells leading to a halt in tumor development.
Glioblastomas are the most destructive and deadly form of brain tumors that continues to pose a serious threat that needs urgent treatment and the company is working fast and hard to process the WP1066 drug into clinic for approval. The MD Anderson Brain and Spine experts are optimistic that the new drug has unique natural elements that can help in fighting the brain tumor properties.
The WP1066 belongs to a certain class of cancer drugs called the STAT3 inhibitors that have the ability to prevent tumors from growing. The WP1066 can also provoke the tumor cells to die instantly. Previous tests show that the drug is effective in treating the human glioblastoma in the preclinical replicas. The next move is to try whether the new drug is effective if given to the patients suffering from glioblastoma conditions.
The new drug is currently on hold in the clinical labs since the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has requested for extra chemistry, production, and control data and other requirements to accelerate the support of the trials. Moleculin has also partnered with Mayo Clinic to use WP1066 drug for treating the pediatrics brain cancers.
Early this year, Moleculin announced that its leading candidate, Annamycin, which is also known as the Liposomal Annamycin, has obtained an Orphan Drug Designation from FDA to be used for treating the acute myeloid leukemia conditions. This was a key milestone for the company that has a great goal of developing anti-cancer drugs.
