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PDF file - 180K, Table S1. Genes in the VDV signature, ordered by anti-VEGF response in human IBC trial. Table S2. Gene Ontology terms over-represented in VDV signature. Table S3. Summary of tumors models tested.

PDF file - 233K, Fig S4A. Validation and application of a compacted 22-gene VDV subset in human clinical samples. Fig S4B and C. Stratification of NO16966 patients by VEGF and CD31 expression levels.

PDF file - 154K, Fig S5. Most proxVDV genes are not obviously up-regulated by rVEGF in vitro.

PDF file - 83K, Fig S6. Effect of VDV gene expression and bevacizumab treatment in OS.

PDF file - 113K, Fig S1. Kinetics of anti-VEGF effects on proliferation (ki67) and tumor burden in the RIP-TβAg model.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to identify conserved pharmacodynamic and potential predictive biomarkers of response to anti-VEGF therapy using gene expression profiling in preclinical tumor models and in patients.Experimental Design: Surrogate markers of VEGF inhibition [VEGF-dependent genes or VEGF-dependent vasculature (VDV)] were identified by profiling gene expression changes induced in response to VEGF blockade in preclinical tumor models and in human biopsies from patients treated with anti-VEGF monoclonal antibodies. The potential value of VDV genes as candidate predictive biomarkers was tested by correlating high or low VDV gene expression levels in pretreatment clinical samples with the subsequent clinical efficacy of bevacizumab (anti-VEGF)-containing therapy.Results: We show that VDV genes, including direct and more distal VEGF downstream endothelial targets, enable detection of VEGF signaling inhibition in mouse tumor models and human tumor biopsies. Retrospective analyses of clinical trial data indicate that patients with higher VDV expression in pretreatment tumor samples exhibited improved clinical outcome when treated with bevacizumab-containing therapies.Conclusions: In this work, we identified surrogate markers (VDV genes) for in vivo VEGF signaling in tumors and showed clinical data supporting a correlation between pretreatment VEGF bioactivity and the subsequent efficacy of anti-VEGF therapy. We propose that VDV genes are candidate biomarkers with the potential to aid the selection of novel indications as well as patients likely to respond to anti-VEGF therapy. The data presented here define a diagnostic biomarker hypothesis based on translational research that warrants further evaluation in additional retrospective and prospective trials. Clin Cancer Res; 19(13); 3681–92. ©2013 AACR.

PDF file - 63K, Fig S3. Enrichment of VDV markers Tumor-Associated Endothelial Cells.

PDF file - 708K, Fig S2A. Histological evidence for the in vivo activity of VEGF pathway inhibitors in MDA-MB-231 tumors. Fig S2B. In vivo VEGF blockade or VEGFR-2 downstream signaling inhibition induces consistent downregulation of proxVDV genes. Fig S2C. The proxVDV gene ESM1 is an in vivo VEGF target specifically expressed in tumor-associated vasculature

UDP-3-O-(R-3-hydroxymyristoyl)-N-acetylglucosamine deacetylase (LpxC) is a Zn

New drugs with novel mechanisms of resistance are desperately needed to address both community and nosocomial infections due to Gram-negative bacteria. One such potential target is LpxC, an essential enzyme that catalyzes the first committed step of lipid A biosynthesis. Achaogen conducted an extensive research campaign to discover novel LpxC inhibitors with activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa We report here the in vitro antibacterial activity and pharmacodynamics of ACHN-975, the only molecule from these efforts and the first ever LpxC inhibitor to be evaluated in phase 1 clinical trials. In addition, we describe the profiles of three additional LpxC inhibitors that were identified as potential lead molecules. These efforts did not produce an additional development candidate with a sufficiently large therapeutic window and the program was subsequently terminated.

New drugs with novel mechanisms of resistance are desperately needed to address both community and nosocomial infections due to Gram-negative bacteria. One such potential target is LpxC, an essential enzyme that catalyzes the first committed step of lipid A biosynthesis. Achaogen conducted an extensive research campaign to discover novel LpxC inhibitors with activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. We report here the in vitro antibacterial activity and pharmacodynamics of ACHN-975, the only molecule from these efforts and the first ever LpxC inhibitor to be evaluated in phase 1 clinical trials. In addition, we describe the profiles of three additional LpxC inhibitors that were identified as potential lead molecules. These efforts did not produce an additional development candidate with a sufficiently large therapeutic window and the program was subsequently terminated.

Delta-like 4 (DLL4) and Jagged1 (JAG1) are two key Notch ligands implicated in tumour angiogenesis. They were shown to have opposite effects on mouse retinal and adult regenerative angiogenesis. In tumours, both ligands are upregulated but their relative effects and interactions in tumour biology, particularly in tumour response to therapeutic intervention are unclear. Here we demonstrate that DLL4 and JAG1 displayed equal potency in stimulating Notch target genes in HMEC-1 endothelial cells but had opposing effects on sprouting angiogenesis in vitro. Mouse DLL4 or JAG1 expressed in glioblastoma cells decreased tumour cell proliferation in vitro but promoted tumour growth in vivo. mDLL4-expressing tumours showed fewer but larger vessels whereas mJAG1-tumours produced more vessels. In both tumour types pericyte coverage was decreased but the vessels were more perfused. Both ligands increased tumour resistance towards anti-VEGF therapy but the resistance was higher in mDLL4-tumours versus mJAG1-tumours. However, their sensitivity to the therapy was restored by blocking Notch signalling with dibenzazepine. Importantly, anti-DLL4 antibody blocked the effect of JAG1 on tumour growth and increased vessel branching in vivo. The mechanism behind the differential responsiveness was due to a positive feedback loop for DLL4-Notch signalling, rendering DLL4 more dominant in activating Notch signalling in the tumour microenvironment. We concluded that DLL4 and JAG1 promote tumour growth by modulating tumour angiogenesis via different mechanisms. JAG1 is not antagonistic but utilises DLL4 in tumour angiogenesis. The results suggest that anti-JAG1 therapy should be explored in conjunction with anti-DLL4 treatment in developing anti-Notch therapies in clinics.

Background PLZ is a next-generation aminoglycoside with structural modifications that protect it from aminoglycoside-modifying enzymes (AMEs) and in vitro activity against multidrug-resistant (MDR) Enterobacteriaceae, including aminoglycoside- and carbapenem-resistant strains. In the CARE study, PLZ was associated with improvement in 28-day all-cause mortality vs. CST in patients with CRE BSI. We report the microbiological outcomes in the CARE study by pathogen and key resistance mechanism. Methods CARE was a multinational, open-label trial that enrolled BSI patients with documented or presumed CRE into two cohorts. Patients in the randomized cohort received PLZ (15 mg/kg q24h IV) or CST (300-mg load [CST base activity] then 5 mg/kg/day IV) plus adjunctive tigecycline or meropenem. Patients in the observational cohort received PLZ plus investigator’s choice of adjunctive agent. Treatment duration was 7–14 days. Isolate identification and susceptibility testing were conducted by a central laboratory. Whole-genome sequencing was used to identify AME and carbapenemase genes. Microbiological outcomes were assessed in patients with confirmed CRE who received ≥1 dose of study drug (mMITT population). Results Of 45 BSI patients enrolled, 43 had confirmed CRE (mMITT), including Klebsiella pneumoniae (n = 42) and Enterobacter aerogenes (n = 1). Against CRE, PLZ MICs ranged from 0.12 to >128 µg/mL; 25/28 (89.3%) isolates from PLZ-treated patients had a PLZ MIC ≤4 µg/mL, while 3 had a PLZ MIC ≥128 µg/mL and a confirmed 16S ribosomal methyltransferase gene. CST MICs ranged from 0.25 to >128 µg/mL; 6/16 (37.5%) isolates from CST-treated patients had an MIC >2 µg/mL. There were 47 distinct Enterobacteriaceae pathogens isolated from 43 patients, and of these, AME genes were detected in 43/47 (91.5%), most commonly aac(6’)-Ib (n = 29). Carbapenemase genes were detected in 45/47 (95.7%) isolates, most commonly blaKPC (n = 33). PLZ demonstrated higher microbiological eradication rates than CST against CRE, including AME- and carbapenemase-producing isolates (table). Conclusion The results provide evidence of the efficacy of PLZ-based therapy for patients with BSI due to MDR Enterobacteriaceae, including AME- and carbapenemase-producing organisms. Disclosures A. W. Serio, Achaogen, Inc.: Employee and Shareholder, Salary. A. Smith, Achaogen, Inc.: Employee and Shareholder, Salary. K. M. Krause, Achaogen, Inc.: Employee, Salary. I. Galani, Achaogen, Inc.: Scientific Advisor, Research funding and honoraria. MSD: Scientific Advisor, Honoraria. A. C. Gales, MSD: Consultant and Speaker, Consulting fee. Pfizer: Consultant and Speaker, Consulting fee. BD: Consultant, Consulting fee. Bayer: Consultant, Consulting fee. A. Jubb, Achaogen, Inc.: Employee and Shareholder, Salary. L. E. Connolly, Achaogen, Inc.: Consultant, Consulting fee.