Site Editors
Shaji K. Kumar, MD
Prashant Kapoor, MD, FACP
Shaji K. Kumar, MD
Prashant Kapoor, MD, FACP
Posted: Thursday, July 27, 2023
A novel lipid nanoparticle called Lipo E-X targets the antigen E-selectin, which is significantly upregulated in the tumor-associated endothelial cells of patients with multiple myeloma. Its use may potentially improve the therapeutic efficacy of the proteasome inhibitor bortezomib and reduce its often dosing-limiting adverse effects, according to the nanoparticle’s developers, Abdel Kareem Azab, PhD, of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, and colleagues. The team shared their research findings in correspondence with Blood Cancer Journal.
E-selectin “can be a potential target for nanoparticle-based delivery of proteasome inhibitors in multiple myeloma, for improved treatment specificity,” continued Dr. Azab and co-investigators. Their work’s challenge includes “the main limitation that hampers the treatment with [proteasome inhibitors: the] lack of specificity of the pharmacological effect and therefore [the] dose-limiting off-target [adverse] effects, such as peripheral neuropathy and hematological toxicities.”
Currently, more than 90% of patients with multiple myeloma relapse because of drug resistance. The bone marrow microenvironment, of which E-selectin is part, plays “a crucial role in the development of resistance to proteasome inhibitors,” the scientists explained.
Disclosure: The study authors’ disclosure information can be found at nature.com.
