Description:
Reference #: 1692
The University of South Carolina is offering licensing opportunities for Novel treatment for pseudomyxoma peritonei.
Background:
Pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP) is a rare cancer, which originates as an appendiceal neoplasm. Due to its usually poor vascularization and floating as nodules, PMP spreads easily to the peritoneal cavity, causing mucinous ascites and tumor implants on the surfaces of the peritoneal wall and abdominal organ surfaces. Due to the limited effectiveness of current chemotherapy drugs against PMP, the standard treatment involves a high-risk, intensive surgery spanning more than 10 hours, which poses significant danger to patients in weakened health and leaves them with no viable alternative treatments. PMP not only poses unique diagnostic and therapeutic dilemmas due to its rarity and complex biology, but also lacks a platform for pre-clinical drug testing.
Invention Description:
1. Using primary PMP tumor samples, we were the first to have generated three stable PMP cancer cell lines (PMP501-1, PMP457-2, and ABX023-1) that can be used for drug screening against PMP.
2. By screening the metabolites bacteria growing in peritoneal cavity or within the PMP tumors, we identified Myxomapeptin as a new class of depsi-lipopeptide that can inhibit PMP cell proliferation.
3. By screening metabolites from a large library of bacteria, we discovered a new class of marine fungus-derived polyketides, aspercyclicins A and aspercyclicins B, which selectively inhibited multiple PMP cell lines and induced immunogenic cell death of these cells.
Potential Applications:
The innovation involves a new treatment for Pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP), for which there is no effective treatment, other than intensive and risky surgery.
Advantages and Benefits:
Safe and effective in the treatment of PMP patients. No similar treatment is currently on the market.