RS Oncology Announces New Preclinical Data Show RSO-021 May Block and/or Reverse the Progression of Aggressive Mesotheliomas, Improving Druggability
13.9.2023 16:57:00 EEST | Business Wire | Press release
RS Oncology, a clinical stage biotechnology company developing innovative therapies to eradicate mesothelioma and other diseases, was part of a collaboration that recently shared new preclinical data at the IASLC 2023 World Conference on Lung Cancer in Singapore. The data, presented by Dr. Dean Fennell, represented a partnership between RS Oncology and other lead research institutions, including the University of Leicester and the Cunniff Laboratory at the University of Vermont Cancer Center.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230912702236/en/
“Sarcomatoid tumors are highly resistant to anti-cancer therapies, and many patients run out of available treatment options. Our findings here might have unveiled a druggable ‘Achilles Heel’ against this terrible disease,” said Dr. Fennell, presenting author on the study. Dr. Fennell and Dr. Cunniff shown at lunch during AACR conference 2023. (Photo courtesy of George Naumov)
Mesotheliomas can transform from a less aggressive epithelioid malignancy to a more aggressive sarcomatoid form. Using biphasic mesotheliomas as a model containing both epithelioid and sarcomatoid features, investigators at the University of Leicester, led by Dr. Fennell, conducted a geospatial analysis of patient tissues to explore the molecular signatures associated with the histological regions.
Using sophisticated spatial analysis tools coupled with machine learning approaches, the group found that the more aggressive sarcomatoid regions had distinct molecular signatures driving pro-tumor pathways, drug resistance, and increased metastatic potential. These findings were validated across an independent cohort of 150 mesothelioma patient tissues. Notably, tumor regions containing sarcomatoid tissue showed features of increased resistance to oxidative stress – a critical tumor cell adaptation for survival.
In collaboration with Dr. Brian Cunniff’s laboratory, the team then evaluated molecular signatures of human biphasic mesothelioma tumor cells following treatment with the irreversible PRX3 inhibitor RSO-021, which is currently being evaluated in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial in patients with malignant pleural effusion caused by advanced/metastatic solid tumors (NCT05278975). RSO-021 treatment reversed the gene signatures associated with epithelial-to-sarcomatoid transition, including downregulation of hypoxia, glycolysis, and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-associated genes. These results suggest that this transition, thought to be unidirectional in nature, may be PRX3-dependent, druggable, and now reversible.
“Sarcomatoid tumors are highly resistant to anti-cancer therapies, and many patients run out of available treatment options. Our findings might have unveiled a druggable ‘Achilles Heel’ against this terrible disease,” said Dr. Fennell, presenting author on the study. “The ability to treat such tumors with RSO-021 and revert them to epithelioid malignancies could delay or even prevent emergence of the most aggressive features associated with mesothelioma. Further, RSO-021 could potentially sensitize them to other treatments.”
Presentation Details
Abstract Number: MA17.11
Session:
MA17 - Current Standards and Future Directions in Mesothelioma
Title: Spatial Transformation in Mesothelioma Involves a Hypoxia-TGF Beta-EMT Axis that is Reversible via PRX3 Inhibition
Date: Tuesday, September 12, 10:45 AM UTC +8
About RS Oncology
RS Oncology (RSO) is a clinical stage biotechnology company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts with a mission to eradicate mesothelioma and other diseases worldwide through novel science and an innovative business model.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230912702236/en/
Contact information
Jarrett Duncan, CEO
j.duncan@rsoncology.com
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Altasciences Supports 4B Healthcare in Advancing Steroid Nasal Irrigation Rinse to Clinical Trials24.9.2026 15:40:00 EEST | Press release
Altasciences is proud to announce that recent formulation work supporting 4B Healthcare Inc. (“4B”) has helped advance its RhineX nasal irrigation rinse therapy into clinical investigation. Following several months of formulation development, R&D manufacturing, stability testing, and quality assurance support at Altasciences’ CDMO facility in Harleysville, PA, the Tennessee-based pharmaceutical company has received FDA clearance to proceed with clinical testing of RhineX under its IND. First subject dosing is planned for October 2026, approximately seven months after formulation development began. "The concept for RhineX grew out of a problem I have seen in my own ENT practice for years—the need for a better treatment option for allergic rhinitis when conventional medical therapy is not enough,” said Brannon Mangus, MD, Co-Founder and CEO of 4B. “We founded 4B Healthcare to take that physician insight and turn it into a pharmaceutical product that could meaningfully change how these pa
ParaScript Acquired by Stakk to Create a Global Digital Trust Platform Focused on Combating Fraud24.9.2026 15:30:00 EEST | Press release
ParaScript, an Al-powered document processing company, today announced that Stakk Limited (ASX: SKK) (“Stakk”), a company publicly traded on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX), has successfully completed its US$63 million (A$88.7 million) acquisition of ParaScript, LLC and ParaScript Management, Inc. (“ParaScript”), creating a scaled and profitable AI-native digital trust platform. Stakk acquired ParaScript for its industry-leading AI-powered document processing and recognition technology, which uses advanced machine learning to process large volumes of documents with high speed and accuracy, helping organizations detect fraud earlier, prevent losses and improve outcomes. The combined business becomes one of the largest AI-native digital trust infrastructures serving regulated industries, with more than 300 enterprise customers and more than 110 billion digital interactions processed annually across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East and Australia. Customers include many of the world's
SLB Awarded Four Multi-Year Integrated Well Construction Contracts by Aramco24.9.2026 15:04:00 EEST | Press release
Global energy technology company SLB (NYSE: SLB) today announced it has been awarded four integrated well construction contracts by Aramco to support oil and gas development across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Under the contracts, SLB will manage end-to-end well construction services, delivering more than 450 wells in the three-year term, with an optional extension of up to two years. "Delivering hundreds of wells across a multi-year program and in multiple operating environments requires an integrated model that connects planning, execution, and digital workflows to set new industry performance benchmarks,” said Steve Gassen, executive vice president of Geographies for SLB. “Awarding SLB these advanced well construction programs at scale reflects Aramco’s confidence in our integrated model and capabilities." SLB's integrated well construction model brings together every aspect of well delivery through a technology-enabled operating model. It combines digital drilling workflows with au
Sahajanand Medical Technologies Receives EU MDR Certification for Supraflex Cruz and Product Family, Reinforcing Global Compliance and Patient Safety24.9.2026 15:03:00 EEST | Press release
Sahajanand Medical Technologies Limited (SMT), a leading global manufacturer of cardiovascular medical devices, today announced that it has received certification under the European Union Medical Device Regulation (EU MDR 2017/745) for Supraflex Cruz and its product family. SMT is a leading player in India’s drug-eluting stent market and ranks among the top five companies in key European markets, including Germany, Spain and Poland. The certification follows the conformity assessment process established under EU MDR 2017/745 including assessment of SMT’s technical documentation, clinical evaluation and quality management system. Together with SMT’s existing ISO 13485 quality management system and MDSAP certifications, the EU MDR certification confirms that Supraflex Cruz has successfully undergone assessment against the EU MDR’s stringent requirements for safety, performance and clinical evidence. Supraflex Cruz is a sirolimus-eluting coronary stent system designed to improve luminal d
Acadia Pharmaceuticals Announces Phase 3 Enabling Topline Results from Phase 2 RADIANT Study of Remlifanserin for the Treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease Psychosis (ADP)24.9.2026 14:00:00 EEST | Press release
Acadia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: ACAD) today announced Phase 3 enabling topline results from the Phase 2 portion of the ongoing RADIANT clinical trial program evaluating remlifanserin for the treatment of hallucinations and delusions associated with Alzheimer’s disease psychosis (ADP). For the primary endpoint of change from baseline in the Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms-Hallucinations and Delusions subscales (SAPS-H+D), once daily 60 mg remlifanserin demonstrated a change of -12.6 versus a -10.4 change for placebo at week 6, yielding a standardized effect size of 0.26 (p=0.0603). For the key secondary endpoint, Clinical Global Impression – Severity (CGI-S-ADP), the 60 mg dose achieved a change from baseline of -1.3 versus a change of -0.9 for placebo at week 6, yielding a standardized effect size of 0.37 [p=0.0077 (nominal)]. On both efficacy measures, the difference in the 60 mg dose versus placebo increased through the 6-week treatment period. The 30 mg dose showe
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom