On April 8, 2024 Notable Labs, Ltd. (Nasdaq: NTBL) ("Notable" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage precision oncology company developing a new class of cancer therapies identified by its Predictive Precision Medicine Platform (PPMP), reported data related to innovations in the use of cryopreserved samples in the PPMP assay at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) (AACR 2024) being held in San Diego, CA (Poster abstract 2548) (Press release, Notable Labs, APR 8, 2024, View Source [SID1234641885]).
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"We are very pleased to share the result of our innovative sample handling study with the cancer community at AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) 2024. The ability to derive a high-quality assessment of the response to treatment based on the results of cryopreserved samples is an important innovation. It has been previously thought that frozen samples could not be effectively thawed and used for cell viability assays. Based on the data presented at AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper), Notable now has the potential to develop partnerships to assess new treatment regimens, including combination therapies, using Notable’s PPMP platform and archived, cryopreserved samples thawed according to our protocols and proprietary media compositions," said Thomas Bock, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Notable. "We hope this opens new opportunities to apply our PPMP to a broad range of archived samples and therapeutics to unlock value and new treatment options for patients with cancer."
Joseph Wagner, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer of Notable, added, "As we are ready to initiate the Phase 2 program with volasertib in Q2 2024, we are dedicated to maintaining a focus on innovation for our PPMP. The careful evaluation of sample handling protocols, presented at AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) 2024, makes our PPMP more comprehensive and enhances the opportunity to study and apply it more broadly. As we continue to execute, we look forward to further demonstrating the potential of PPMP and partner with biopharmaceutical companies and innovators to provide potential new treatment options for patients with cancer."
Summary of Data and Findings for Notable’s Sample Handling Study:
Overview: The study was designed to evaluate the potential use of cryopreserved samples as an alternative to fresh samples for predicting treatment response in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) using Notable’s PPMP.
● Cryopreserved samples are known for exhibiting low sample viability and cell recovery, rendering their practical utilization challenging
● Notable adapted an existing methodology to process cryopreserved patient-derived leukemia cells to investigate their use as an alternative to fresh samples in the PPMP assay
Method: First, a method was established using freshly isolated white blood cells (WBCs) from AML patients (<2 days from sample collection). A fraction of these cells was cryopreserved. Both fresh and cryopreserved cells (after thawing and culturing) were assessed on the PPMP and results compared. Second, the established method was applied to cryopreserved samples (from a biobank) collected from AML patients prior to their treatment with chemotherapy (cytarabine plus idarubicin). Results obtained on the PPMP were compared to the clinical responses experienced by the patients after treatment with cytarabine and idarubicin.
Results: For the method development study, ex vivo responses to 3 different compounds (venetoclax, 5-azacytidine and decitabine) were assessed after culturing of the cryopreserved cells for 24- and 48-hour post thaw using two different media ("A" and "B"). There was a strong correlation (R2 from 0.77 to 0.92) for venetoclax and 5-azacytidine between the results obtained with fresh vs. frozen samples. For the biobank samples treated with cytarabine and idarubicin, culture media A and B show a similar dose-response behavior. Importantly, the PPMP correctly predicted clinical responders (complete remission) and non-responders (refractory).
While Notable will continue to evaluate and validate these sample handling methodologies, these data open the door to the use of cryopreserved samples from retrospective cohorts.
Poster information: Retrospective prediction of clinical response to standard-of-care therapies in acute myeloid leukemia by an ex vivo drug sensitivity assay using cryopreserved primary samples
Session Category: Clinical Research
Session Title: Real-World Biomarkers
Session Date and Time: Monday Apr 8, 2024 9:00 AM – 12:30 PM PT
Location: Poster Section 45
Poster Board Number: 8
Published Abstract Number: 2548
The full poster will be posted to the company’s website in the Scientific Presentations & Publications page in the Investors section of the website shortly after the event.