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2027 Scholar-Innovator and ADDF-Harrington
Oncology, Immunology
Novel Tumor-Targeted Chemerin Immunotherapeutic
2024 Harrington Scholar-Innovator
Recent advances in immunotherapies have produced impressive responses in treating cancers such as bladder and lung cancer and melanomas. These drugs, however, have been less successful treating prostate cancer: only about 10% or less of patients with advanced prostate cancer respond to current immunotherapies. In addition, these therapies cause systemic activation of the immune system, potentially producing challenging immune-mediated toxicities.
Dr. Pachynski and his colleagues are determined to change that. They have developed an immunotherapeutic based on a tumor-fighting protein called chemerin. Chemerin is a naturally produced protein that—in part—acts to direct immune cell movement and migration. Dr. Pachynski has discovered that chemerin is “turned down” in multiple tumor types, thereby evading the immune system. By “turning up” the concentration of chemerin within the tumor, Dr. Pachynski was able to “recruit” immune cells into the tumor and significantly suppress tumor growth.
According to Dr. Pachynski, a chemerin-based therapeutic that is prostate-specific and antigen-targeted would represent a first-in-class novel immunotherapy for prostate cancer and potentially other cancers as well.
Small animal studies of chemerin have demonstrated its effectiveness as a tumor fighter in prostate and multiple other cancers. Dr. Pachynski says human prostate tumor models using the novel immunotherapy have already shown efficacy, providing the rationale for translation of his team’s research into the clinic.
“There’s a huge need for effective immunotherapies in prostate cancer,” Dr. Pachynski says. “This deficit is sad and disheartening for patients and providers who know the great potential of immunotherapy, so we are working hard to change that with this therapeutic platform.”
"Our Harrington advisors really understand the nuts and bolts of how to get a drug into the clinic."