Bringing the first MYC inhibitor closer to the clinic

Two decades of research aimed at combating resistance to therapy and cancer regression through inhibiting the MYC oncogene—found deregulated in most, if not all tumor types—led to the in-house development of the Omomyc (OMO-103) therapeutic mini-protein by the VHIO and Catalan Institute of Research and Advanced Studies’ (ICREA) spin-off company Peptomyc S.L., which Soucek co-founded in 2014 alongside Marie-Eve Beaulieu, Peptomyc’s Chief Scientific Officer.Having previously reported the preclinical efficacy and safety of this novel cell-penetrating mini-protein in mouse models, investigators of her Models of Cancer Therapies Group and the Peptomyc team worked in collaboration to successfully develop anti-MYC peptides for the treatment of several tumor types.OMO-103 has since gained pace in becoming the first ever clinically viable and direct inhibitor of MYC thanks to its ability to enter cells and reach its target compartment, namely the nucleus. The successful intravenous systemic administration of this mighty mini-protein MYC inhibitor against various tumor types, led to the design of a first-in-human phase I clinical trial.Bringing the first MYC inhibitor closer to the clinicFirst findings of this phase I dose-escalation study in all-comers solid tumors demonstrate the excellent safety profile and early signs of anti-tumor clinical activity of OMO-103 in humans, supporting further studies evaluating its efficacy in specific indications­, also in combination with standard of care.