The development of a novel oncolytic virotherapy for acute myeloid leukemia

Modern molecularly targeted therapies have shown promise in treating some blood cancers, but a cure remains elusive for most acute blood cancer patients. This is largely due to the survival of some blood cancer cells that possess unique properties and can cause treatment failure or relapse, highlighting the need for new therapies. In collaboration with Virogin Biotech Ltd, we aim to develop an innovative oncolytic virotherapy to effectively target acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patient cells that are resistant to current therapies. This pre-clinical study will evaluate the efficacy of novel anti-cancer oncolytic agents (developed by Virogin), alone or in combination with an immunotherapy, in targeting primitive AML cells and their survival pathways in vitro and in vivo. We expect that this new combination strategy will be more effective in eliminating critical blood cancer cells compared to traditional drugs and provide directly proof-of-concept for a subsequent clinical trial.

Faculty Supervisor:

Xiaoyan Jiang

Student:

Sammy (Yixin) Zheng

Partner:

Virogin Biotech Canada Ltd

Discipline:

Medicine

Sector:

Medical devices

University:

Program: