Amplia enters into second agreement with Korean specialist drug screening company Next&Bio

Amplia has extended its preclinical research collaboration with Korean drug screening specialist Next&Bio, following a successful initial phase of work and promising preliminary data from the study.  

The collaboration has been investigating the ability of Amplia’s FAK inhibitors to suppress the growth of patient-derived pancreatic cancer cells that possess genetic mutations in the kRAS gene known to be present in >90% of pancreatic cancers. Amplia’s best-in-class FAK inhibitor narmafotinib showed promising activity in these initial tests and this data will be presented at a forthcoming scientific conference.  

Building on these results, the second phase of the collaboration will investigate the potential of combining narmafotinib with experimental kRAS inhibitors, an emerging class of drugs in development for pancreatic cancer and other solid tumours. There is strong scientific rationale that targeting both FAK and mutant kRAS may deliver improved therapeutic responses. 

Amplia’s Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Dr Chris Burns, commented,  

“The initial phase of our collaboration successfully demonstrated the activity of Amplia’s FAK inhibitors on patient-derived pancreatic cancer cells. Building on these promising results, we are eager to further investigate the potential synergy between narmafotinib and kRAS inhibitors. This next phase of the collaboration is expected to strategically position Amplia for expanded partnering opportunities and commercial growth.” 

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