Kronos Bio to present data from p300 KAT inhibitor program

Kronos Bio will present preclinical data from its p300 KAT inhibitor program for human papillomavirus-driven tumors at the EORTC-NCI-AACR Symposium on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics, being held from October 23 to 25, 2024 in Barcelona, Spain. Kronos Bio is exploring the utility of its p300 KAT inhibitor, KB-9558, for HPV-driven tumors. In the presentation, the authors will show that the oncogenic HPV-16 virus hijacks the host transcriptional cofactor p300 in order to drive expression of the virally encoded oncogenes E6 and E7. Inhibition of p300 KAT activity achieved anti-tumor effects by downregulating E6 and E7 which in turn leads to reactivation of p53, a known tumor suppressor. “Despite the availability of HPV vaccines, HPV still causes many cancers including head and neck cancer and cervical cancer, with an estimated 38,000 new cases of HPV-driven cancers annually in the United States alone. Viral oncoproteins such as the ones encoded by HPV provide a unique therapeutic opportunity since they are only found in tumor cells,” said Charles Lin, Ph.D., chief scientific officer of Kronos Bio. “By demonstrating that we can selectively inhibit E6 and E7 with a p300 KAT inhibitor, we hope to provide patients with HPV-driven cancers innovative targeted therapies.”