Collaboration Focused on Developing Rapid RLIP76 Companion Diagnostic to Optimize Cancer Therapy
California, Texas, Southwest England, and Cayman Islands – 2022 — Attomarker Ltd, a British medical technology company founded at the University of Exeter, has entered into a strategic partnership with Avesta Bio, a translational oncology company developing therapies targeting cellular stress-response pathways, to advance precision approaches in cancer treatment.
The collaboration will focus on the development of a rapid point-of-care diagnostic designed to measure RLIP76 (RALBP1), a multifunctional stress-responsive protein implicated in tumor progression and drug resistance. RLIP76 is frequently overexpressed in cancer cells, and preclinical research suggests that its inhibition may reduce tumor growth and enhance the effectiveness of anti-cancer therapies.
Avesta Bio has developed multiple therapeutic approaches to inhibit RLIP76. Given RLIP76’s broader biological functions — including roles in cellular transport and chemotherapy response — precise monitoring of protein levels may be critical to optimizing therapeutic timing, dosing, and patient selection.
Under the partnership, Attomarker’s benchtop biomarker platform will be adapted to develop a companion diagnostic capable of rapidly detecting and quantifying RLIP76 antigen levels and antibodies in patient blood samples at the point of care. The goal is to enable clinicians to assess target engagement and treatment response in near real time.
“We are pleased to partner with Attomarker to explore the development of a rapid companion diagnostic for RLIP76-targeted therapy,” said Ian Akash Morrison, Co-Founder and CEO of Avesta Bio. “Advanced point-of-care diagnostics have the potential to support more precise therapeutic decisions and enhance the safe and effective delivery of targeted treatments.”
Dr. Sanjay Awasthi, Chief Research and Development Officer and Co-Founder of Avesta Bio and the original discoverer of RLIP76’s functional role in cancer biology, added:
“RLIP76 inhibition represents a mechanistically driven approach to targeting stress-response pathways in oncology. Because RLIP76 has multiple biological functions, careful monitoring of protein levels during therapy is important. A rapid diagnostic platform could enable more personalized and responsive treatment strategies.”
Attomarker’s technology is designed to perform multiple biomarker measurements simultaneously using a single serum sample, delivering results within minutes. The platform has previously been deployed in clinical and laboratory settings across the UK, Europe, and the Caribbean.
Professor Andrew Shaw, CEO and Founder of Attomarker, commented:
“This collaboration provides an opportunity to apply our rapid diagnostic platform to an important emerging target in oncology. We look forward to supporting efforts to deliver more precise and responsive cancer treatment.”
Professor Neil Gow, Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research at the University of Exeter, added:
“Strategic partnerships such as this demonstrate how academic innovation can translate into impactful healthcare solutions. We are pleased to see this collaboration advancing toward potential clinical benefit.”
The partnership represents an important step in integrating therapeutic development with companion diagnostic strategy, reinforcing a precision medicine approach to oncology.
About Avesta Bio
Avesta Bio is a translational oncology company developing first-in-class therapies that target fundamental cellular stress-response and drug-resistance pathways. By correcting maladaptive cellular programs implicated in cancer progression, the company aims to deliver safe and effective treatments for patients with high-unmet-need malignancies.
About Attomarker Ltd
Attomarker Ltd is a medical technology company founded on research conducted at the University of Exeter. The company develops rapid, multi-analyte diagnostic platforms designed to support precision medicine in both clinical and laboratory environments.