Indian Scientists Develop RK-251 Cancer Drug

Key facts

• Indian researchers have developed an experimental cancer drug named RK-251.
• RK-251 is designed to activate primarily inside cancer cells by exploiting high levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in them.
• Upon activation, RK-251 releases the anticancer compound NBDHEX, which blocks target proteins used by cancer cells to survive.
• Preclinical studies showed RK-251 exhibited strong activity against triple-negative breast cancer cells with much less effect on healthy cells.
• Studies on zebrafish embryos showed no obvious signs of toxicity and displayed fluorescence in the presence of ROS, supporting the drug's activation mechanism.
• The research was led by Dr. Asis Bala from the Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST) and Dr. K.P. Bhabak from the Indian Institute of Technology-Guwahati (IIT-Guwahati).
• The findings have been published in the ACS Journal of Medicinal Chemistry.