Dr. Jung-Mo Ahn led a team of researchers in the creation of ERX-41, a new compound that uses breast cancer cells’ own weaknesses to “wipe out” tumor cells. Most existing breast cancer treatments require the presence of estrogen receptors (ERs) to work. This leaves few options for patients with triple-negative breast cancer, or TNBC, which lacks ERs and therefore is resistant to such treatments.
Meanwhile, ERX-41 is effective regardless of whether the targeted cancer cells possess ERs. It works by binding with lysosomal acid lipase A (LIPA), a protein found in the cell’s endoplasmic reticulum. (You might remember this as the maze-like cellular structure on all your middle school biology exams.) Cancer cells produce far more LIPA than necessary, but the endoplasmic reticulum usually processes them efficiently enough to keep the cells healthy. When ERX-41 binds to LIPA, however, it jams the endoplasmic reticulum and causes a buildup, which eventually bloats and kills the cell.
Breast cancer cells. (Photo: Dr. Cecil Fox, National Cancer Institute/Wikimedia Commons)
Dr. Ahn’s team tested ERX-41 in isolated cells and human cancer tissue, where the molecule inhibited growth without killing healthy cells. They then tested the molecule in live mice with various forms of human cancer. ERX-41 successfully reduced the size of their tumors without producing any adverse effects, such as weight fluctuation or behavioral changes. (A later test in healthy mice further solidified a lack of negative side effects.) The molecule’s effectiveness with other treatment-resistant cancers, like pancreatic cancer, ovarian cancer, and glioblastoma, led the researchers to believe ERX-41 might someday be used to treat those diseases as well.
This isn’t the first time Dr. Ahn has moved the needle in regards to beating treatment-resistant cancers. Less than five years ago he developed candidate compounds that block the co-regulators necessary for breast cancer to grow. A few years before that, Dr. Ahn synthesized another molecule capable of inhibiting the growth of prostate cancer.
Dr. Ahn and two colleagues founded EtiraRX, a Dallas therapeutics startup, in order to conduct clinical trials of each novel treatment. Patents are currently pending for ERX-41; in the meantime, the team is busy planning clinical trials for ERX-41, which will begin in early 2023.
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