Announcing our first publication

We are thrilled to announce the publication of Humane Genomics’ first article. We contributed a chapter to the International Review of Cell and Molecular Biology (IRCMB). This is a book series by Elsevier, as part of a special issue on Viral Vectors in Cancer Immunotherapy.

Our review, titled “Rational selection of an ideal oncolytic virus to address current limitations in clinical translation,” offers valuable insights for investors, virologists, and newcomers to the field alike.

In our article, we summarize the significant progress made in developing new cancer treatments. Among these advancements is oncolytic virus therapy (OVT), a promising modality that employs natural or engineered viruses to selectively replicate in and kill cancer cells. We discuss different viruses under research and development, highlighting their limitations and potential. We then propose and analyze selection criteria for an ideal oncolytic virus therapy, which include:

• non-pathogenicity (doesn’t cause disease)
• low or no seroprevalence (meaning people have no antibodies that will neutralize the therapy)
• cancer-specific selectivity
• support for therapeutic transgene insertion and expression
• genetic stability

Each criterion is detailed and its impact on OVT success is explored.

Based on these criteria, we evaluate known OVTs and propose vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) as a promising candidate for development. Since a cancer cure doesn’t exist in nature, it must be engineered. At Humane Genomics, we are engineering the next generation of oncolytic viral therapies, having developed a platform technology capable of producing designer viral therapies on demand. Our article lays the groundwork for our rationale and logical approach in selecting VSV as our base chassis for engineering.

We invite you to read “Rational selection of an ideal oncolytic virus to address current limitations in clinical translation” and share your thoughts with us!