• HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
Wednesday, October 8, 2025
BIOENGINEER.ORG
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News Chemistry

Brain tumor drug receives rare disease designations from the FDA

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
September 2, 2020
in Chemistry
Reading Time: 2 mins read
0
IMAGE
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram

The drug treats fast-growing, deadly brain cancers with no effective treatment

IMAGE

Credit: Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has awarded Rare Pediatric Disease Designation (RPDD) for diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) and Orphan Drug Designation for treatment of malignant glioma to OKN-007, an investigational drug discovered at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation and being developed by Oblato, Inc.

DIPG is a fast-growing pediatric cancer that starts in the brain stem. It is one of several sub-categories of malignant gliomas, deadly cancers of the brain and spinal cord.

“We are very pleased to receive the successful designations from the FDA for our proprietary compound OKN-007,” said Oblato President and Chief Executive Officer Won S. Yang. These designation programs provide for special status and priority review of regulatory applications for new therapies for rare pediatric or “orphan” diseases, conditions that affect limited patient populations.

According to the National Brain Tumor Society, approximately 26,000 Americans will be diagnosed with primary malignant brain tumors this year. Of those, DIPG.org reports that up to 300 will be cases of DIPG.

OKN-007 was initially discovered by OMRF scientists Rheal Towner, Ph.D., and Robert Floyd, Ph.D. Oblato acquired all rights to OKN-007 from OMRF, and the company is currently testing the investigational drug in a Phase 2 clinical study of 56 patients suffering from recurrent glioblastoma, the most aggressive form of glioma. The patients are being treated with the drug in combination with another medication, temozolomide, at eight sites in the U.S.

In pre-clinical studies at OMRF, Towner has also shown that OKN-007 inhibits growth of human DIPG tumors implanted in experimental models. Oblato is planning to begin clinical trials in DIPG patients in 2021. “Right now, there is no effective treatment for this deadly brain cancer,” said Towner.

Going forward, Oblato and OMRF will continue collaborating, with a focus on improving treatment for patients suffering from a variety of solid-tumor cancers.

“OMRF and Oblato are committed to a single goal: helping patients overcome these life-threatening illnesses,” said OMRF Director of Technology Ventures Andrew Westmuckett, Ph.D. “Our hope is that OKN-007 can transform the therapeutic landscape.”

###

About Oblato

Oblato, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Korean biotech company GtreeBNT, is incorporated in Delaware and has its principal place of business in New Jersey.

About OMRF

OMRF (omrf.org) is an independent, nonprofit biomedical research institute dedicated to understanding and developing more effective treatments for human diseases.

Media Contact
Ryan Stewart
[email protected]

Tags: cancerClinical TrialsMedicine/HealthneurobiologyPediatricsPharmaceutical SciencePhysiology
Share12Tweet8Share2ShareShareShare2

Related Posts

blank

Birds Flourish Despite Pollution from Persistent ‘Forever’ Chemicals

October 8, 2025
Rice University Unveils Second Cohort of Chevron Energy Graduate Fellows

Rice University Unveils Second Cohort of Chevron Energy Graduate Fellows

October 7, 2025

Covalent Organic Frameworks: Building Infinite Metal–Organic Structures

October 7, 2025

Next-Generation Perovskite Solar Cells Near Commercialization Milestone

October 7, 2025
Please login to join discussion

POPULAR NEWS

  • Sperm MicroRNAs: Crucial Mediators of Paternal Exercise Capacity Transmission

    1042 shares
    Share 416 Tweet 260
  • New Study Reveals the Science Behind Exercise and Weight Loss

    99 shares
    Share 40 Tweet 25
  • New Study Indicates Children’s Risk of Long COVID Could Double Following a Second Infection – The Lancet Infectious Diseases

    95 shares
    Share 38 Tweet 24
  • Ohio State Study Reveals Protein Quality Control Breakdown as Key Factor in Cancer Immunotherapy Failure

    78 shares
    Share 31 Tweet 20

About

We bring you the latest biotechnology news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Follow us

Recent News

Circular RNAs in Mammalian Follicle Development: Insights

Surgical Menopause May Prompt Early Workforce Exit in Women, But Hormone Therapy Shows Promise

Birds Flourish Despite Pollution from Persistent ‘Forever’ Chemicals

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Success! An email was just sent to confirm your subscription. Please find the email now and click 'Confirm' to start subscribing.

Join 63 other subscribers
  • Contact Us

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
    • Home Page 2
  • News
  • National
  • Business
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Science

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.