The University of Wisconsin System was awarded a $542,721 Project Grant under the Discovery and Applied Research for Technological Innovations to Improve Human Health (CFDA 93.286) program by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering. The grant will support research and development of a novel ferritin-degrading therapy to treat triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). The key products and services to be delivered include:
- Optimization of a ferritin-degrading proteolysis targeting chimera (DEFER) molecule to induce TNBC cell pyroptosis.
- Investigation of the underlying mechanisms of ferritin degradation as a novel TNBC drug target.
- In vitro and in vivo evaluation of DEFER's anti-TNBC efficacy, including loading DEFER into a platelet-based delivery system to improve pharmacokinetics.
- Combination studies of DEFER-loaded platelets with immune checkpoint inhibitors to assess synergistic effects in preventing post-surgical TNBC recurrence in murine models and human TNBC patient-derived xenografts.
The project will run from August 2, 2024 to April 30, 2028.
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