Hungarian researchers have used a drug on animals to inhibit the growth of skin and lung cancer and achieve a complete cure for breast cancer. The joint development by the HUN-REN Natural Sciences Research Center (TTK) and Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) could herald a new era in the history of anti-tumor therapies.
In their recently published study, the researchers showed how they succeeded in “taming” a highly toxic, cancer-fighting agent, pyrrolino-daunorubicin, in a so-called liposomal nanocarrier. The extraordinary effectiveness of the compound, so-called LiPyDau (liposomal pyrrolino-daunorubicin), surprised even the researchers themselves.
In animal experiments, it successfully inhibited tumor growth in six different tumor models, including melanoma and lung cancer models. In a model for hereditary breast cancer, it even led to a complete cure, which is unique,
the research center announced. One outstanding finding is that LiPyDau has even proven effective in drug-resistant tumors, i.e., tumors that no longer respond significantly to currently used clinical agents.
LiPyDau was able to destroy tumors that had developed from one of the most resistant breast cancer cells in mice within a week with a single treatment. The tumors can be identified in terms of size and location using a luminescent imaging technique (colored spots on the animals’ bodies).
Photo: Facebook/HUN-REN Magyar Kutatási Hálózat
Dr. Kristóf Hegedüs, who worked on the synthesis of the compound under the supervision of Dr. Gábor Mező (ELTE), explained that once they realized what a promising molecule they were dealing with, they began to develop techniques to produce it in sufficient quality and quantity. “This paved the way for animal testing,” added the HUN-REN TTK researcher.
The compound to be used, pyrrolino-daunorubicin, is a thousand times more toxic to cancer cells than conventional agents. However, they did not know how to administer it to the test animals without damaging healthy tissue. “That is when the idea of liposome packaging came up, which protects healthy cells from the active ingredient while enabling targeted accumulation in the tumor. That is how LiPyDau came about,” said Dr. Szilárd Tóth, who led the testing of LiPyDau on cell lines.
This is not only an effective preparation, but also, judging by experience and data from the specialist literature, one of the most effective anti-tumor preparations ever tested on mice,
explained Dr. András Füredi, one of the lead authors of the study. “We have been working on the development of tumor therapies for fifteen years, but we have never observed such a significant effect. A single dose of LiPyDau cured the test animals,” emphasized the researcher.
The research is the result of extensive collaboration between several research groups within HUN-REN TTK. The research groups behind this discovery worked closely together on this project for almost ten years.
Dr. Gergely Szakács (TTK), head of the research group, emphasized the importance of exemplary collaboration within Hungary. The National Drug Development Laboratory, the HUN-REN Energy Research Center, Óbuda University, the University of Pécs, the National Oncology Institute, and the Medical and Veterinary Universities of Vienna participated in the project. In addition, the researchers’ work was supported by Kineto Lab Kft., one of Hungary’s leading oncology development companies, with which the next steps for clinical testing of LiPyDau are already being planned. However, further research is needed to determine whether these promising results can be translated into clinical practice.
When asked when patients will be able to benefit from the effectiveness of LiPyDau and whether it is possible for such an experimental drug to enter clinical practice, Attila Kigyós, founder and CEO of Kineto Lab Kft., replied: “LiPyDau is by far the most effective anti-tumor molecule we have tested in the history of our company.
We must do everything we can to develop it to the point where it can be clinically tested or where it attracts the interest of a large pharmaceutical company so that it can be purchased and further developed into an oncology product.”
LiPyDau has a good chance of becoming one of the cancer drugs developed in Hungary, added the head of the development company.
The research results were recently published in the renowned international journal Molecular Cancer.
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Via hun-ren.hu; Featured image: Pexels
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