Data published in Cancer Research show Secarna Pharmaceuticals' LNAplus^TM ASOs targeting metadherin significantly slow progression and metastasis of colorectal and lung cancers in vivo

• Data further elucidate how metadherin (MTDH) promotes tumor progression and metastasis in colorectal and lung cancers
• High unmet medical need remains for novel treatment options for those tumor types, accounting for one-third of all cancer-related deaths globally
• Secarna's MTDH-targeting LNPplus^TM ASOs shown to effectively and specifically suppress MTDH expression in vivo and in vitro

Munich/Martinsried, Germany, December 08, 2020 - Secarna Pharmaceuticals GmbH & Co. KG ("Secarna"), a biopharmaceutical company focusing on the discovery and development of next generation antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) therapies to address challenging or previously undruggable targets via its LNAplus^TM platform, today announced the publication of data on the role of metadherin ("MTDH") in colorectal and lung cancers in the peer-reviewed journal Cancer Research. The publication discusses compelling in vivo and in vitro data generated in collaboration with researchers from Princeton University and Firebrand Therapeutics, Inc. on LNA-modified ASOs targeting MTDH that were developed with Secarna's LNAplus^TM technology. The article, "Therapeutic Targeting of Metadherin Suppresses Colorectal and Lung Cancer Progression and Metastasis," is available here: .

MTDH has been found to be involved in the development of a variety of cancers, including colorectal and lung cancers, which account for one-third of all cancer-related deaths globally. The published studies investigated the role of MTDH in lung and colorectal cancer in a variety of tumor models and concluded that MTDH promotes tumor progression and metastasis with distinct mechanisms. In lung cancer, MTDH was shown to promote tumor progression by suppressing T cell infiltration into the tumor. In colorectal cancer MTDH promotes tumor progression via Wnt activation. Wnt signaling has previously been shown to be the most frequently altered and hyperactivated pathway in colorectal cancer.

Secarna identified a set of LNA-modified ASOs targeting MTDH and selected those that most potently inhibited MTDH. These ASOs were evaluated in both in vivo and in vitro models and were shown to effectively and specifically suppress MTDH expression. In mouse tumor models, the ASOs were shown to significantly inhibit tumor progression and metastasis in colorectal, lung and also breast cancer.

Jonas Renz, Managing Director and Co-founder of Secarna Pharmaceuticals, said: "These published data provide compelling new insights into the mechanism of metadherin in promoting lung and colorectal cancers. Importantly, we have been able to show in pre-clinical testing that targeting metadherin using Secarna's LNA-modified ASOs inhibits progression of these cancers and, therefore, opens new avenues developing effective therapies against lung, colorectal and potentially other cancers. Moreover, data generated across Secarna's entire oncology pipeline showcase how broadly LNAplus^TM ASOs can be employed in this therapeutic area."

About Secarna's proprietary drug discovery platform, LNAplus^TM

For discovering, testing and selecting antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) for pre-clinical and clinical development, Secarna employs its proprietary, customized LNAplus^TM drug discovery platform. LNAplus^TM encompasses all aspects of drug discovery and pre-clinical development and has proven to be fast, reliable, scalable, efficient and to provide for a uniquely integrated workflow, enabling the discovery of novel antisense-based therapies for challenging or currently undruggable targets.^{The platform includes the powerful proprietary OligofyerTM bioinformatics pipeline, a streamlined, high efficiency screening process including our proprietary LNA-Vit(r)oxTM safety test system as well as target-specific functional assays. Secarna's platform and ASOs have been validated by numerous in-house projects as well as in several academic and industry collaborations.}

About Secarna Pharmaceuticals GmbH & Co. KG

Secarna Pharmaceuticals is the next generation antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) company addressing high unmet medical needs in the areas of immuno-oncology, immunology, as well as viral, neurodegenerative and cardiometabolic diseases. Secarna's mission is to maximize the performance and output of its proprietary ^TM antisense oligonucleotide discovery platform, as well as to develop highly specific, safe, and efficacious best-in-class antisense therapies for challenging or currently undruggable targets. With 13 in-house development programs and 10 partnered programs focusing on targets in indications where antisense-based approaches have clear benefits over other therapeutic modalities, Secarna is the leading European antisense drug discovery and development company.

Contact

Jonas Renz
Managing Director and Co-founder

Secarna Pharmaceuticals GmbH & Co. KG
Am Klopferspitz 19
82152 Planegg/Martinsried
Tel.: +49 (0)89 215 46 375

For media enquiries:

Anne Hennecke/Vera Lang
MC Services AG

Tel.: +49 (0)211.52 92 52 22