HARRISON, NY / ACCESSWIRE / August 12, 2020 / Sapience Therapeutics, Inc., a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of peptide therapeutics to address difficult-to-treat oncology indications, today announced dose administration for the first patient in a Phase 1/2, open-label, dose escalation and expansion study of single agent ST101, a peptide therapy being evaluated for the treatment of adults with unresectable and metastatic solid tumors who are not eligible for other therapies or have progressed on prior therapies.

'The initiation of this study represents a significant milestone for Sapience, as it marks the first program from our portfolio of peptide therapies to enter the clinic,' said Alice Bexon, M.D., Chief Medical Officer of Sapience Therapeutics. 'The ST101 program highlights Sapience's therapeutic approach of using peptides to target intracellular protein-protein interactions, which are often referred to as 'Undruggable Targets'. Through this study, we anticipate generating a wealth of clinical data to guide our future development plans for this first-in-class antagonist of C/EBPβ.'

Nehal Lakhani, M.D., Ph.D., Director of Clinical Research at START Midwest (South Texas Accelerated Research), and a clinical investigator on the study added, 'We are eager to explore the profile of ST101 and to investigate the role of C/EBPβ inhibition for the treatment of advanced solid tumors. We are always looking for opportunities to accelerate the development of new treatments to improve patients' lives and give them hope against cancer, and ST101 holds that potential.'

The Phase 1/2 trial will enroll patients at several leading clinical centers in the US and UK. The trial will start with a dose escalation phase to assess the safety and tolerability of ST101, followed by an expansion phase to evaluate preliminary efficacy in patients with glioblastoma, locally advanced/metastatic breast cancer, castration-resistant prostate cancer and melanoma. Please refer to www.clinicaltrials.gov for additional information (NCT 04478279).

About ST101

ST101 is a peptide antagonist of the transcription factor C/EBPβ, which is typically expressed and active in stem cells or early progenitor cells but not in most mature or differentiated cells. Certain cancers activate C/EBPβ, which results in the expression of genes with roles in cell proliferation, differentiation, and the cell cycle. Disruption of this transcription factor with ST101 results in targeted killing of cancer cells, as normal cells do not rely on C/EBPβ driven transcription for survival.

About Sapience Therapeutics

Sapience Therapeutics, Inc., is a privately held, clinical stage biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing peptide-based therapeutics for major unmet medical needs, particularly high mortality cancers. With platform-based discovery of peptide therapeutics that disrupt protein-protein interactions, Sapience's molecules hold potential to target intracellular interactions that are traditionally considered 'undruggable targets'. Its lead compound, ST101, is a first-in-class molecule with potential applications in various solid tumors and hematologic malignancies. For more information on Sapience Therapeutics, please visit www.sapiencetherapeutics.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements, and any statements other than statements of historical fact could be deemed to be forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements may include, among other things, statements regarding future events that involve significant risks and uncertainties. These statements are based on management's current expectations, and actual results and future events may differ materially as a result of certain factors, including, without limitation, risks related to the application of the net proceeds from the offering to Sapience's product development objectives, our ability to obtain additional funds, and meet applicable regulatory standards and receive required regulatory approvals. These are forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. Sapience does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events, changed assumptions or otherwise.

Contacts

Sapience Therapeutics, Inc.:
Barry Kappel, Ph.D., M.B.A.
President and Chief Executive Officer
[email protected]

SOURCE: Sapience Therapeutics, Inc.