Technology

Our unique programs are sustainable and could ultimately benefit many people's lives

Based on the scientifically proven technology as published by independent research groups in leading journals (Nature Communications, Theranostics, J. Med. Chem., JACS) and patents (US9872919, WO2015021305A1), PRUNUS is now developing breakthrough therapeutic/diagnostic products that may dramatically improve the treatment outcome as well as quality of life.

A molecular lock capable of transforming bare poisons into targeted cancer therapeutics

AcK-Lock is a broadly applicable masking module made out of a single amino acid lysine (K), potentially leading to a paradigm shift in cancer drug development. Addition of AcK-Lock module to a matching agent can generate excellent therapeutic window even if the original agent lacks it (see an ideal case below). This would help to achieve maximal therapeutic potential while minimizing side effects. 

By requiring both histone deacetylase (HDAC) and cathepsin L (CTSL) activities as selective key factors for cancer, AcK-Lock prodrug strategy can render highly specific activation in a wide range of cancer cells. The examples of matching agents include cytotoxic drugs (Nature Communications, Theranostics, J. Med. Chem.) and chemical probes (JACS) depending on their therapeutic/diagnostic applications.

Setting up red flags 🚩🚩🚩 on cancer cells

PRUNUS’ second core technology Selective Metabolic Labeling is uniquely positioned in the field of immuno-oncology using non-toxic small molecules that can be selectively loaded into cancer cells. It takes advantage of AcK-Lock prodrug strategy selectively labeling proteins produced in a broad spectrum of cancer cells with immunogenic tags. The presence of tags makes cancer cells visible to the immune system, helping the body to regain control on cancer. This approach would facilitate valuable applications for precision therapeutics & diagnostics.

Multi-Cancer Early Detection

It is very important to identify cancer as early as possible and predict who will better benefit from the treatment. Based on our proprietary technology, we are developing a new multi-cancer blood test for early detection and prediction of treatment responders. The availability of such diagnostic means would further strengthen our therapeutic approach.