Beijing Sun-Novo Pharmaceutical Research Co., Ltd (SHA: 688621), a biopharmaceutical company based in China, has announced that it has received approval from the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) to proceed with a clinical study for its investigational drug candidate STC008. This study will focus on the treatment of tumor cachexia in patients with advanced solid tumors.
STC008 is an innovative growth hormone secretagogue receptor (GHSR) agonist developed in-house by the company. The GHSR receptor has emerged as a significant target for the development of therapies addressing tumor cachexia. Growth hormone releasing peptide (Ghrelin), a peptide hormone comprised of 28 amino acids, is primarily produced by the acid-secreting glands in the stomach’s fundus and acts as an endogenous ligand for the GHSR receptor. As a selective GHSR-1a agonist, STC008, when activated, can influence gastrointestinal motility through a mediating mechanism, leading to weight gain effects.- Flcube.com