Linnaeus Therapeutics Awarded $4,000,000 SBIR Phase 2 Bridge Award by the National Cancer Institute to Advance LNS8801 for the Treatment of Cutaneous and Uveal Melanoma

HADDONFIELD, N.J., April 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Linnaeus Therapeutics, Inc. ("Linnaeus"), a privately held biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel small molecule oncology therapeutics, today announced it has been awarded a Phase 2 Bridge Small Business Innovation Research ("SBIR") Award by the National Cancer Institute ("NCI") of the National Institutes of Health ("NIH"). 

The $4,000,000 award was granted to the company after a highly competitive peer-review process. The award will help fund the clinical development of its lead compound, LNS8801, which targets a G protein-coupled receptor (GPER), for the treatment of metastatic cutaneous and uveal melanoma both as a monotherapy and in combination with pembrolizumab.

"This award provides a strong peer-reviewed validation of the core science that is the basis of LNS8801, its target GPER, and the early clinical data seen in patients with cancer," said Patrick Mooney, MD, Chief Executive Officer of Linnaeus. "This award will allow us to further advance LNS8801 as a potentially safe and effective oral therapeutic for the treatment of metastatic cutaneous and uveal melanoma. We thank the NCI for their ongoing support and belief in the potential of LNS8801 to help patients with cancer."

About LNS8801
LNS8801 is an orally bioavailable and highly specific and potent agonist of GPER whose activity is dependent on the expression of GPER. GPER activation by LNS8801 rapidly and durably depletes c-Myc protein levels. In preclinical cancer models, LNS8801 displays potent antitumor activities across a wide range of tumor types, rapidly shrinking tumors and inducing immune memory.

In the ongoing clinical study in humans, LNS8801 monotherapy has been safe and well tolerated. Additionally, LNS8801 has demonstrated target engagement, c-Myc protein depletion, and clinical benefit in patients with advanced cancer.

About Linnaeus  
Linnaeus Therapeutics, Inc. is a privately held clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel small molecule oncology therapeutics that target G protein-coupled receptors. The company was formed and launched in partnership with the UPstart incubator at the University of Pennsylvania's Penn Center for Innovation (PCI).

SOURCE Linnaeus Therapeutics, Inc.