Silence Therapeutics this week announced that German regulators have approved the company's application to begin a phase I study of its siRNA-based cancer drug Atu027.
Atu-027 is a systemically administered drug comprising modified, blunt-ended siRNAs targeting PKN-3, a protein kinase that company researchers have linked to tumor growth and metastases, that have been formulated with a mixture of cationic and fusogenic lipids.
The open-label study will test single and repeated intravenous doses of the drug in patients with advanced solid tumors. It is expected to begin "immediately following successful patient enrollment" and will take about 18 months to complete, according to Silence.