Abstract 576: The pan-quadruplex drug QN-302 selectively down-regulates key pathway targets in pancreatic cancer cells that are up-regulated in human pancreatic cancer

Abstract We have previously disclosed (Ahmed et al, ACS Med Chem Lett, 2020) a novel small molecule G-quadruplex binding compound, QN-302, that is highly potent in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cells and in several in vivo models for this disease. QN-302 was invented at University College London UK and has been subsequently developed by Qualigen Therapeutics Inc. It was cleared by the FDA in August 2023 for Phase 1a clinical trials in USA and is currently under clinical evaluation. RNA-seq whole-genome transcriptome analysis revealed that QN-302 selectively targets G-quadruplexes in cancer-related genes, notably by forming stable G-quadruplex complexes with appropriate promoter sequences. This results in the transcriptional down regulation of affected genes, which map to for example, the hedgehog, axon guidance, WNT/β-catenin and P38 signal transduction pathways. In many instances individual expression changes are modest, though statistically significant: cumulatively, they affect whole pathways. We have revisited the RNA-seq data for QN-302 in PDAC MIA-PACA2 cells (GSE151741 at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/) in detail and now identify a small group of eleven down-regulated genes, all with >3-fold expression changes. Interestingly all these genes and their genes products have been previously identified as playing a role in human PDAC (they also have varying roles in other cancer types). Some have been validated as anticancer targets. 10/11 of these genes (https://www.proteinatlas.org/) have been previously reported as being over-expressed in significant fractions of large (>150) groups of human cancer patients from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project. Cellular transcriptome data on these eleven genes is presented here, which together with earlier reports on them, supports the designation of QN-302 as a pan-G-quadruplex agent targeting a group of major genes involved in PDAC maintenance and metastasis. Data from a xenograft model for pancreatic cancer is also available for four of these genes, which concurs with the cellular data. We suggest that the identification of these 11 genes may also provide a basis for biomarker selection and possible patient stratification based on transcriptome data. Citation Format: Stephen Neidle, Ahmed A. Ahmed, Tariq Arshad. The pan-quadruplex drug QN-302 selectively down-regulates key pathway targets in pancreatic cancer cells that are up-regulated in human pancreatic cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2024; Part 1 (Regular Abstracts); 2024 Apr 5-10; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(6_Suppl):Abstract nr 576.