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Targeting cell states in cancer
Mechanism of Action

Targeting Cancer Cell States

to Block Cancer Growth & Proliferation

In normal, healthy development, cells divide rapidly and proliferate to form the tissues and organs of the human body. Once these cells terminally differentiate, they are committed to a particular cell state and lose the ability to proliferate.

Genetic alterations have the potential to promote tumorigenesis – the process by which normal cells transform into cancer cells. These alterations hijack normal development pathways, pushing cancer cells into an earlier, proliferative cell state – also known as a plastic state. They do this by blocking terminal differentiation, inducing dedifferentiation (reversing a cell’s state to a less specialized and earlier cell state) or inducing transdifferentiation (the conversion of one cell state to another cell state).

The plastic states of cancer cells are associated with the most aggressive, metastatic, and drug-resistant tumors. By targeting the drivers that lock cancer cells in an altered cell state, we can revert the tumor cells back to their normal cell state and inhibit their growth and proliferation.

Our Platform

AURIGIN™ Platform

for Rapid Drug Discovery & Development

We have built a proprietary platform called AURIGIN that we are leveraging for the rapid discovery and development of the next generation of targeted cancer therapies.

AURIGIN is a proprietary platform that integrates our developmental biology expertise with AI Machine Learning algorithms. It includes a database of single cell genomics data that allows it to compare normal cell states to cancer cell states. The power of AURIGIN is its ability to harnesses novel insights into tumor biology and generate validated targets, identify optimized model systems for early program de-risking, and identify biomarkers for effective patient selection.

Our Pipeline

Pipeline Development

for the Next Generation of Targeted Cancer Therapies

We are developing a portfolio that is the direct output of our AURIGIN platform. We have identified a set of priority targets and programs that represent first-in-class or best-in-class opportunities for both solid tumor cancers and hematological malignancies.

  • Includes Breast Cancer, Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer, and Colorectal Cancer
  • Includes Neuroendocrine Prostate Cancer, Small Cell Lung Cancer, Neuroendocrine Tumors, and Neuroblastoma
  • EMT = Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition
Publications, Presentations, & Posters
August 19, 2024
Presentation
Presentation
POSTER

Property-based optimization of heterobifunctional degraders of KAT2A and KAT2B for the treatment of cancer

Author(s)

Neef J, Straley KS, Mukherjee C, Tipnis A, Bhatta M, Sharma S, Sinicropi-Yao S, DeBartolo J, McRiner A, Chan B, Wilson H, Lee C, Boudhraa Z, El Ezzy M, Bittinger M, Antipov L, Graeber T, Yen K, Millan D

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View Poster

Presented at

American Chemical Society

Published in

April 9, 2024
Presentation
Presentation
POSTER

Potent and selective degradation of KAT2A and KAT2B induces profound cell state changes and inhibits growth of AML, SCLC and NEPC model systems

Author(s)

Straley KS, Neef J, Antony-Debre I, Bhatta M, Sharma S, Sinicropi-Yao S, DeBartolo J, McRiner A, Chan, B, Wilson H, Lee CS, Boudhraa Z, El Ezzy M, Sharif U, Bittinger M, Antipov L, Graeber TG, de Botton S, Yen KE, Millan, DS

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View Poster

Presented at

AACR Annual Meeting 2024

Published in

April 7, 2024
Presentation
Presentation
POSTER

AURIGIN: A comprehensive single-cell OMICs atlas of human development and an AI/ML framework to classify and identify the drivers of tumor plasticity and altered cellular state

Author(s)

DeBartolo J, Wilson H, Straley KS, Bhatta M, Sharma S, Sinicropi-Yao S, Neef J, Chan B, McRiner A, Bittinger M, Antipov L, Yen KE, Graeber TG, Millan DS

View Presentation
View Poster

Presented at

AACR Annual Meeting 2024

Published in

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Recent News

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August 19, 2024

Auron Presents Preclinical Data at American Chemical Society Annual Meeting

Newton, MA, August 19, 2024 – Auron Therapeutics, a biotechnology company focused on developing next-generation targeted therapies by identifying and inhibiting the oncogenic cell states of cancer, today shared preclinical data showcasing the strength of the company’s medicinal chemistry capabilities. These discovery research data, presented at the American Chemical Society (ACS) Annual Meeting, are from the company’s lead program targeting KAT2A/B, a histone acetyltransferase driving multiple cancer types.

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