Marina Biotech Will Show New Data on Cancer Treatment

Marina Biotech (OTCQB:MRNA) will present new information on the use of antihypertensive for the treatment of cancer by targeting vascular resistance in the tumor, at the Endocrine Society Annual Meeting in April.
As quoted in the press release:

On April 1, 2017 at 1:00 pm E.T., Dr. Cynthia Lee, co-author of the abstract, will present the preclinical proof of concept for the use of olmesartan and lisinopril in the treatment of inflammatory breast cancer, melanoma and glioblastoma tumor models. Natriuretic peptides are peptide hormones secreted from the ventricles of the heart in response to changes in pressure that occur when heart failure develops and worsens. The authors examined the plasma levels of brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) in bladder, ovarian, glioblastoma and pancreatic cancers using a point of care quantitative test for BNP. With the exception of pancreatic cancer, bladder, ovarian, and glioblastoma cancers were associated with significant reduction in BNP and age-adjusted BNP blood levels. This suggested that vascular resistance is important for tumor growth and was confirmed by inhibition of tumor growth and metastasis in preclinical tumor models upon treatment with lisinopril and olmesartan, which are components of IT-102 and IT-103, respectively.
Joseph Ramelli, CEO of Marina Biotech, stated, “This preclinical proof of concept further supports the development of IT-102 and IT-103, not only for combined hypertensive/pain, but also for the treatment of cancers such as Familial Adenomatous Polyposis and colorectal cancer.”
Dr. Vuong Trieu, Chairman of Marina Biotech and CEO of Marina Biotech’s largest stockholder, Autotelic LLC, stated, “The recent issuance of a patent to Autotelic LLC for the use of BNP in the monitoring and treatment of cancer and the therapeutic application of IT-102 and IT-103 dovetail well together for personalized cancer therapy. The BNP patent that was issued to Autotelic LLC (U.S. Appl. No. 14/526,376 received Notice of Allowance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in February, 2017) will have a patent life until 2034 and is part of the Autotelic portfolio of patents available to the consortium of companies under the Autotelic umbrella, including Marina Biotech. This represents the cumulative effort of the team over several years and is a significant step forward for cancer therapy.”
¹ “Antitumor Activity of Anti-Hypertensive Agents: Relationship to Brain Natriuretic Peptide (BNP) Levels in Cancer Patients, authored by C. Lee, O. J. D’Cruz, V. Trieu.”
About Marina Biotech
Marina Biotech is a biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapeutics for disease intersections of arthritis, hypertension, and cancer. Our pipeline includes combination therapies of oligonucleotide-based therapeutics and small molecules. The Marina Biotech pipeline currently includes a clinical program in Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (a precancerous syndrome). By its merger with IthenaPharma, Marina Biotech recently acquired IT-102/IT-103 — next generation celecoxib — which will be developed together with CEQ508 as a therapeutic enhancer for therapies against FAP and CRC. IT-102/IT-103 are also being developed for the treatment of combined arthritis/ hypertension and treatment of pain requiring high dose of celecoxib. Additional information about Marina Biotech is available at https://www.marinabio.com.

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