05 Dec Quintessence Biosciences cancer drug clears FDA review; company to start Phase I human trial
Madison, Wis. – Quintessence Biosciences announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared its Investigational New Drug (IND) application for the first of the Company’s EVade Ribonuclease drug candidates, called QBI-139.
The company will begin a Phase I trial of QBI-139 in patients with solid tumors in the coming months.
Unlike conventional chemotherapies, the EVade Ribonuclease technology provides an opportunity to attack RNA in cancer cells, an exciting new drug target, with QBI-139, which is nearly identical to a human protein, pancreatic ribonuclease 1. In preclinical disease models, QBI-139 has shown significant tumor growth inhibition against human pancreatic, non-small cell lung, prostate, and ovarian solid tumors.
“Clearance of the IND application by the FDA represents the first major clinical development milestone for QBI-139,” said Quintessence Biosciences President Laura Strong. “We are optimistic that QBI-139 will provide a new means to help patients with cancer.
“There is a clear need for drugs that attack cancer in new ways and ribonuclease therapies are positioned to accomplish that goal.”
About Quintessence Biosciences, Inc.
Quintessence Biosciences, Inc. is a private biopharmaceutical company focused on development of proprietary cancer therapies based on the EVade Ribonuclease technology. Quintessence’s first product candidate is QBI- 139. The company also has a pipeline of other EVade Ribonuclease products in preclinical research.
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