Gene therapy company Genprex Inc (NASDAQ: GNPX) announced on Monday that it has signed an exclusive patent license agreement with NYU Langone Health for the development of Reqorsa® Gene Therapy (quaratusugene ozeplasmid) targeting mesothelioma. The agreement grants Genprex full patent exclusivity for this co-owned technology.

Mesothelioma, primarily pleural in form, affects around 3,000 individuals annually in the US, with a poor prognosis and a three-year survival rate of just 23%. Research presented at the 2024 EORTC-NCI-AACR Symposium demonstrated that Reqorsa significantly decreased cell proliferation and invasion, while increasing apoptosis in four malignant pleural mesothelioma cell lines. The therapy restores the TUSC2 tumour suppressor gene, which is downregulated in 84% of mesothelioma cases.

Reqorsa, delivered intravenously via Genprex's Oncoprex Delivery System, uses lipid-based nanoparticles to selectively target cancer cells. Laboratory studies at MD Anderson showed that TUSC2 uptake in tumour cells after Reqorsa treatment was 10 to 33 times higher than in normal cells.

In 2024, Genprex formed a Mesothelioma Clinical Advisory Board, composed of leading specialists, to support the preclinical development of Reqorsa in mesothelioma. This program expands Genprex's oncology pipeline, which also includes clinical trials for non-small cell and small cell lung cancers, both designated by the FDA for Fast Track status, with an Orphan Drug Designation for small cell lung cancer.

Genprex is also advancing gene therapies for diabetes through GPX-002, aimed at restoring insulin production by reprogramming pancreatic cells.