Vidac Pharma’s small molecule drug candidates are allosteric protein-protein interaction disrupters. Given the importance of the HK2-VDAC association for the proliferation of cancer cells, countering this process by selectively dissociating HK2 from VDAC, makes a promising anti-cancer strategy. Such dissociation triggers apoptosis in these malignant cells, as well as interferes with an essential metabolic pathway required for cancer cell proliferation.
Furthermore, as our drugs are allosteric, they do not interfere with the catalytic activities of HK1 nor of HK2, which possess structurally highly related catalytic sites. Thus, this novel and exciting targeted mechanism of action is highly selective as it only targets malignant HK2-expressing cells while sparing normal HK1 expressing cells.
HK2-expressing tumors, for which this mechanism-of-action holds promise, are tumors that are highly glycolytic and have a strong FDG-PET signal.
Vidac is developing several VDAC/HK2 modulators – VDA-1102 ointment, VDA-1102 IV, and VDA-1275.