This technology is a method for inducing non-apoptotic death of cancer cells in a regulated manner for more efficacious radiation therapy.
Radiosensitizers are small-molecule agents used to render tumor cells more sensitive to radiation therapy. However, tumors may acquire resistance to radiation, often through activation of DNA repair and inhibition of apoptosis. This creates a need for radiosensitizers that enhance the tumor’s response to radiation through non-apoptotic mechanisms of cell death.
This technology employs small-molecule inducers of ferroptosis as radiosensitizing agents. Ferroptosis is a regulated, non-apoptotic form of cell death that contributes to radiation-induced cancer cell death. In view of this, the described compounds synergize with radiation to induce ferroptosis in several cancer types, leading to enhanced antitumor effects. In addition, this technology describes a method for identifying whether a cancer patient is resistant to radiotherapy and treating the patient with therapeutic amounts of a ferroptosis inducer. Thus, this technology has the potential to improve the efficacy of radiation therapy for a broad range of indications.
This technology has been validated in a mouse xenograft model, as well as in human patient-derived models of lung adenocarcinoma and glioma.
IR CU19410
Licensing Contact: Joan Martinez
