Supported by advanced structural biology capabilities at MAX IV, Acrivon Therapeutics advanced a novel cancer drug candidate from initial lead identification to clinical development in only 15 months.
The candidate, ACR-2316, is a novel, potent and selective WEE1/PKMYT1 inhibitor that is currently being evaluated in an ongoing Phase 1/2 clinical trial in patients with AP3-prioritized solid tumour types.
“Our internally discovered pipeline programs have greatly benefited from the close collaboration with MAX IV, and from the expertise and experience of our partners facilitating access,” said Kristina Masson, CEO of Acrivon AB in Lund, Sweden and Co-Founder and Executive Vice President of Acrivon Therapeutics in the US.
The research originated from Acrivon’s proprietary AP3 (Acrivon Predictive Precision Proteomics) platform. AP3-generated insights supported the rationale for simultaneously targeting WEE1 and PKMYT1, two closely related proteins with important cell functions including DNA repair, cell growth and division.
Acrivon’s research showed that inhibiting both WEE1 and PKMYT1 could provide a differentiated approach to disrupting cancer-cell survival. These insights helped guide the rational design of ACR-2316.
At MAX IV’s BioMAX beamline, researchers from Acrivon’s partner, SARomics Biostructures, used structural biology approaches to study interaction between potential drug candidates and their protein targets. By integrating structural information generated using BioMAX with insights from the AP3 platform, Acrivon was able to rapidly optimise candidate molecules.
“Having MAX IV be part of our streamlined and highly integrative workflow to design and develop novel drug candidates enables innovation while supporting accelerated timelines and increased efficiency,” Masson said.
ACR-2316 is currently being evaluated in an ongoing Phase 1/2 clinical trial, which has advanced into randomised dose expansion on AP3-prioritized solid tumour types. Initial clinical data have demonstrated a favourable safety profile and durable single-agent activity across multiple tumour types.
