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MCW Researcher Awarded US Patent for Mito-Lonidamine Compositions and Methods to Treat Cancer

Balaraman Kalyanaraman, PhD, Harry R. & Angeline E. Quadracci Professor in Parkinson’s Research and chair of biophysics, and collaborators at Aix-Marseille Université, France—Micael Hardy, PhD, and Olivier Ouari, PhD—are inventors on MCW’s recently awarded US Patent 11,352,382 for Mito-Lonidamine, Compositions and Methods of Use.

This patent pertains to mitochondria-targeting cationic drugs, specifically mito-lonidamine compounds and compositions, and methods of using them to inhibit lung cancer proliferation and progression and metastasis to the brain.

Mito-lonidamine, also referred to as Mito-LON and Mito-LND, is a novel compound developed by adding a mitochondria-targeting molecule, triphenylphosphonium, to lonidamine. Lonidamine, in combination with standard-of-care chemotherapeutics, has undergone clinical trials for treatment of a variety of cancers (non-small cell lung, breast, ovarian, and colon cancers). The novel mito-lonidamine compound selectively targets the mitochondria of tumor cells, making it significantly more effective in inhibiting lung cancer proliferation and invasion.

More information on this technology is detailed in the articles, Targeting Lonidamine to Mitochondria Mitigates Lung Tumorigenesis and Brain Metastasis and Chemoprevention of Lung Cancer with a Combination of Mitochondria-Targeted Compounds. Also, the patent can be reviewed online.

Thanks to the Office of Technology Development at MCW for facilitating the effort that led to patent protection of this novel compound with promising potential in cancer treatment.