Defence Therapeutics Inc. announced the publication of a peer-reviewed study on the anticancer properties of its unconjugated Accum®, one of Defence's product designed notably to treat established T-cell lymphoma. The study, which was published in the prestigious journal of Cancer Science, is entitled, Intratumoral administration of unconjugated Accum® impairs the growth of pre-established solid lymphoma tumors. The urgent need for novel anticancer therapeutics fuels active research in this field.

From that perspective, Accum® holds many advantages over molecules discovered by high throughput screening because: it was rationally designed to break down endosomal membranes and hence has a known initial function, the chemical structure of the molecule could be easily modified to generate several Accum® variants, it can be easily linked to antibodies as an in situ cleavable anticancer molecule (to increase its specificity), and it is highly versatile, as it targets a common pathways relevant to any, if not most, cancer indication. The key highlights of the Accum® study are: The molecule induces cell death of various cancer cell lines (T-cell lymphoma, colon, melanoma and breast). Accum® triggers the intracellular production of reactive oxygen species and disrupts endosomal membranes.

Following contact with Accum®, cancer cells die through a process called immunogenic cell death. The Accum® effect required both CD4 and CD8 T cells (important in fighting cancer). Intratumoral administration of Accum® synergises with common immune-checkpoint inhibitors leading to efficient tumor growth control.

In summary, unconjugated Accum® could be used as an anti-cancer molecule. The triggered effects are very interesting and unexpected as the induction of immunogenic cell death brings an additional immune component to the equation, which may turn a cold into a hot tumor with increased infiltration of immune cells as shown in the published study.