Mode
Novel anti-angiogenic/anti-inflammatory modes-of-action
Modality
Synthetic peptide
Descriptor
Suitable for topical ocular application potentially for front and back of eye indications
Context
Anti-inflammatory and anti-angiogenic drugs have found broad usage across both front of eye and back of eye conditions however, they have not been brought together within a single therapy. ALM201 has both potent anti-angiogenic and anti-inflammatory properties and these properties coupled with topical application and rapid penetration from the front to the back of the eye suggest that ALM201 has the potential to tackle a broad range of severe ophthalmological indications irrespective of the ocular location.
Ophthalmology
ALM201 is a potent inhibitor of neo-angiogenesis and inflammation in preclinical ophthalmology models and is not cytotoxic nor immunogenic and has a good tolerability profile. ALM201 can be applied topically and distributes throughout the eye. These properties make ALM201 a potentially relevant novel therapeutic for treating life-limiting ocular indications.
ALM201 is a first-in-class synthetic peptide that is based on the naturally-occurring protein, FK506 binding protein -like (FKBPL). This protein has been reported to bind to the cell surface receptor CD44 and have anti-angiogenic activity (Valentine et al., 2011). CD44 has also been proposed to play a critical role in inflammation (Puré & Cuff, 2001). Furthermore, an ALM201 peptide derivative has been reported to have an association with CD44 in a Biacore® pull-down assay (Yakundi et al., 2013).
Oncology
ALM201 successfully completed a phase 1 dose escalation study in patients with advanced solid tumors (EudraCT no. 2014-001175-31 (see El-Helali et al., 2017)).
Partnering
For all partnering enquiries please contact – martin.wiles@almacgroup.com