Roquefort Therapeutics(ROQ), a biotech company focused on next generation medicines for hard to treat cancers, has successfully filed the international phase Patent Treaty Cooperation (PCT) patent for its proprietary anti-cancer mRNA and RNA oligonucleotide therapeutics.
Today's announcement extends the progress reported in June regarding the Company's anti-cancer RNA therapeutics, which are currently undergoing in vitro and in vivo studies at the University of Sydney and University of New South Wales. The results of these studies have demonstrated a statistically significant reduction in proliferation (cancer growth) and migration.
Once approved, the PCT patent, governed by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), provides patent protection for the invention in more than 155 countries.
The next steps for the MDK programmes involve first testing them with a specialised delivery technology and then progressing to in vivo studies in Q4 2023.
Ajan Reginald, Chief Executive Officer of Roquefort Therapeutics, said: "mRNA technology promises to revolutionize future treatments for cancers and as such we are delighted that we are part of this cutting-edge field to treat the hardest-to-treat cancers”.
“As we've recently seen with the validation of STAT-6 (through a $Billion licensing deal), we believe Midkine will become a highly attractive, validated target and we will be uniquely positioned with a portfolio of patented antibody, mRNA and RNA oligonucleotide medicines. Therefore our focus is continue to deliver on R&D and commercial milestones that highlight the significant potential of Midkine as a novel cancer target."
View from Vox
The market for mRNA cancer therapeutics is a highly lucrative and rapidly expanding sector, led by industry giants such as Pfizer, Moderna, and BioNTech, and estimated to be valued at $31 billion with a compound annual growth rate of 7.8%. Roquefort Therapeutics is well positioned in this field, with four mRNA sequences that uniquely target Midkine.
Midkine is a protein that plays various roles in cellular processes such as growth, differentiation, and inflammation. Elevated Midkine levels in cancer patients have been linked to tumor growth, angiogenesis (the formation of new blood vessels), and metastasis (the spread of cancer to other parts of the body).
The company has a focus on solid cancer treatments, such as breast and liver cancer, where low survival rates are associated with the expression of Midkine. Breast cancer, the leading life-threatening cancer in women with 2.3 million new cases annually and the second highest cause of cancer-related deaths (685,000 per year), has a metastatic survival rate of around 30%, contributing to over 90% of breast cancer fatalities. Elevated Midkine is linked to disease progression, metastasis, and chemotherapy resistance, in a treatment market worth approximately $25 billion with an estimated 8% CAGR.
Tying this together, Roquefort’s deep expertise in Midkine expression has positioned them well in the mRNA cancer market, and, if the company successfully progresses its anti-cancer mRNA therapeutic through clinical trials, this will have the potential to develop a groundbreaking medical treatment.
Follow Roquefort Therapeutics for more News and Updates: