MAIA Biotechnology's Phase 2 THIO-101 Trial Developments Published In Cells Journal
MAIA Biotechnology, Inc. (NYSE:MAIA) ("MAIA", the "Company"), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing targeted immunotherapies for cancer, today announced that a manuscript detailing developments in its Phase 2 THIO-101 clinical trial was accepted and published in the international peer-reviewed open access scientific journal, Cells, in a special issue, "Cellular Mechanisms of Anti-Cancer Therapies"
The manuscript, titled "Perioperative Management of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer in the Era of Immunotherapy," was authored by a group of oncology researchers in Turkey and the U.S. including MAIA scientists Sergei Gryaznov, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer and Ilgen Mender, Director of Biology Research, along with MAIA Scientific Advisory Board members Z. Gunnur Dikmen, M.D., Ph.D. and Saadettin Kiliçkap, M.D., M.Sc.
MAIA Chairman and CEO Vlad Vitoc, M.D. commented, "The importance of the findings published in Cells cannot be overstated. While conventional immunotherapies have expanded treatment options for patients, intrinsic and acquired resistance by patients remains a challenge. Our novel combination strategy of ateganosine sequenced with a checkpoint inhibitor stands out, showing encouraging results in a population with high unmet medical need."
About Cells
Cells (ISSN 2073-4409) is an international, peer-reviewed, open access journal which provides an advanced forum for studies related to cell biology, molecular biology and biophysics. It publishes reviews, research articles, communications and technical notes. Cells is an MDPI (Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute) publication.
About Ateganosine
Ateganosine (THIO, 6-thio-dG or 6-thio-2'-deoxyguanosine) is a first-in-class investigational telomere-targeting agent currently in clinical development to evaluate its activity in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Telomeres, along with the enzyme telomerase, play a fundamental role in the survival of cancer cells and their resistance to current therapies. The modified nucleotide 6-thio-2'-deoxyguanosine induces telomerase-dependent telomeric DNA modification, DNA damage responses, and selective cancer cell death. Ateganosine-damaged telomeric fragments accumulate in cytosolic micronuclei and activates both innate (cGAS/STING) and adaptive (T-cell) immune responses. The sequential treatment of ateganosine followed by PD-(L)1 inhibitors resulted in profound and persistent tumor regression in advanced, in vivo cancer models by induction of cancer type–specific immune memory. Ateganosine is presently developed as a second or later line of treatment for NSCLC for patients that have progressed beyond the standard-of-care regimen of existing checkpoint inhibitors.