Tekmira's TKM-PLK1 is promising for solid tumors (Yahoo! Finance, 10 April 2013)

Tekmira’s silencing RNA (siRNA) candidate TKN-080301 is expected to move into phase II trials later this year, according to an announcement in the company’s first quarter results.

The drug, which delivers siRNA against polo-like kinase 1 mRNA using lipid nanoparticle technology developed by Tekmira, showed promising results from a phase I dose-escalation trial presented to the American Association for Cancer Research meeting in April.

Highlights within the results include TKN-PLK1’s tentative clinical benefit in those patients with gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumours relative to the other solid tumours included within the study, which has informed the company’s decision to progress the drug against neuroendocrine tumours to phase II. The high drug exposure levels that were achieved, several fold higher than previous formulations and ostensibly due to Tekmira’s improved second generation delivery technology, also stands out among siRNA drugs in development.

RNA interference is still in its infancy and no drugs are yet on the market (the first phase II trial of a systemically-delivered siRNA cancer candidate was announced in June 2013, although implanted forms have already entered phase II trials), but given the unmet medical need represented by neuroendocrine tumours it is encouraging to note that the field is receiving interest from new technologies such as these.

Source: Yahoo! Finance

Conference abstract