Molecular Partners Presents New Data on its Radio DARPin Therapy (RDT) Platform at the EANM 2023 Annual Meeting

ZURICH-SCHLIEREN, Switzerland and CONCORD, Mass., Sept. 13, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Molecular Partners AG (SIX: MOLN; NASDAQ: MOLN), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a new class of custom-built protein drugs known as DARPin therapeutics (“Molecular Partners” or the “Company”), today announces new data from its Radio-DARPin Therapy (RDT) platform pertaining to potential efficacy of the approach and building on prior engineering achievements that boosted its renal safety profile. These data will be presented at the European Association of Nuclear Medicine (EANM) Annual Meeting, held September 9–13 in Vienna, Austria and can be accessed here.

The data show the ability of Molecular Partners to substantially increase tumor uptake of RDT candidates through an adjustment of systemic half-life, achieved by binding to the common blood protein serum albumin. These results build on preclinical data, previously reported at AACR and SNNMI in 2023, demonstrating how DARPin engineering can achieve a marked reduction of candidate reabsorption by the kidney, addressing a key challenge for protein-based radionuclide delivery vectors.

“We have previously discussed what is required for the successful expansion of DARPins as a targeting moiety for radiotherapy, including protection of kidneys, tumor accumulation, and the ability to apply these learnings broadly across the platform. With today’s data we show that tuning of half-life can substantially impact the tumor uptake of our Radio DARPins,” said Patrick Amstutz, Ph.D., CEO of Molecular Partners. “Importantly, we are highly encouraged by the data showing that these techniques can be applied across the platform and utilized as we explore multiple targets in the field, including novel targets potentially less amenable to other approaches.”

In summary, the presented results highlight that a desirable tumor to kidney ratio can be achieved for RDTs while also keeping circulating blood levels low to further support a robust efficacy-to-safety profile. The engineering solutions applied to optimize the properties of the RDT platform are transferrable to different tumor-associated antigens. These results present a unique opportunity to explore new targets of interest and thereby potentially further expand the target space for radioligand therapy.

Molecular Partners continues to progress its RDT platform and portfolio of projects, both in-house and in partnership with Novartis. The tumor-associated protein Delta-like ligand 3 (DLL3) has been selected as one of the first targets of Molecular Partners’ proprietary RDT program.