Fralin Biomedical Research Institute spinoff company translates science into peptide drugs targeting cancer stem cells

Scientific progress often follows a prolonged path, but bioentrepreneur Samy Lamouille believes his dedication toward this pursuit will ultimately pay off for brain cancer patients.

Acomhal Research Inc. is a biotech startup that Lamouille and co-founder Rob Gourdie spun out of their research at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC in 2016.

The company, dedicated to providing novel therapeutic approaches to prevent tumor recurrence and metastasis, is developing proprietary drugs to target cancer stem cells, particularly those of glioblastoma solid tumors. A recent partnership with JLABS @Washington, DC, a Johnson & Johnson life science and health care incubator, is helping that process.

“Glioblastoma is a devastating disease,” said Lamouille, CEO of Acomhal Research and assistant professor at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute. Patients diagnosed with glioblastoma, the most common and aggressive tumor of the central nervous system, have a median survival of approximately one year.

Treatment is complicated by several factors. Though surgical resection can remove the primary tumor from the brain, recurrence is tragically a certainty. This recurrence is in large part due to infiltrative cancerous stem cells, which are resistant to standard chemotherapy with the drug temozolomide, reconstituting the tumor even after its removal.

“The treatment regimen has essentially remained unchanged for over 20 years, so there is definitely an urgent need to develop new therapeutics for glioblastoma,” Lamouille said.

As a cancer biologist with more than 20 years of experience in the field, including key positions at several other biotech startups, Lamouille is well equipped for the task of producing therapeutic peptides that directly combat one of the biggest challenges in glioblastoma treatment. He was a principal scientist with Sarcotein Diagnostics and head of discovery at FirstString Research, the company that is now Xequel Bio.

In his academic lab in 2016, Lamouille discovered that the JM2 peptide could be used both to destroy glioblastoma stem cells in the lab and limit stem cell-derived tumor growth in living organisms. The discovery inspired him to translate his findings into founding Acomhal Research.

The JM2 peptide, now the exclusive focus of Acomhal’s development efforts, was invented by Gourdie. Gourdie was studying proteins in the heart called “connexins,” which comprise intercellular junctions that facilitate communication. Gourdie is a serial entrepreneur who holds more than a dozen U.S. patents, with many more pending, and is a senior member of the National Academy of Inventors.

Like Gourdie, Lamouille’s research also investigates connexin proteins, only in the context of cancer rather than the heart. Lamouille said their complementary aims have enhanced their ability to bring Acomhal’s mission to life.

“Definitely it makes a stronger team because we collaborate across scientific disciplines, bringing both of our distinct areas of expertise,” said Lamouille, who also holds an appointment in the Department of Biological Sciences in the College of Science.

Connexin proteins, which are crucial for intercellular signaling and facilitate communication between cancer cells, also inspired the name for Lamouille’s commercial venture. He wanted a name that would call to mind communication and junctions. “Acomhal,” meaning “junction,” is based on the Irish Gaelic language. The idea came from institute Associate Professor James Smyth, a colleague also working on connexins who hails from Ireland.

Now eight years into their commercialization effort, Acomhal has made strides to produce a peptide that targets glioblastoma stem cells, though Lamouille believes that JM2’s usage doesn’t have to stop there. “Cancer stem cells are found in potentially all solid tumors in different tissues and they proliferate through common mechanisms. … We can definitely see the potential to use the peptide to target cancer stem cells found in other types of tumors, including breast cancer tumors or colon cancer tumors,” he said.

JM2’s efficacy has been proven in the lab; the effort now is in development of delivery methods for Acomhal's would-be therapeutic. The path to developing JM2 as a clinical drug is relatively straightforward. Though researchers are still in the preclinical stages, the company is planning to conduct an IND-enabling study on the JM2 peptide to evaluate potential toxicity and identify proper dosing prior to any clinical trials, a project Lamouille estimates will take one to two years.

Acomhal has competed for and obtained significant financial support since its inception. Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC fosters translational research and supports faculty members’ commercialization efforts. The team was a part of the first cohort of companies to join the Roanoke’s Regional Accelerator and Mentoring Program. More recently, Acomhal joined JLABS @ Washington, DC, opening up additional opportunities to receive mentorship, networking, and secure funding to support their research.

The Johnson & Johnson portfolio of labs and health sciences incubator is based at the Children’s National Research & Innovation Campus, which is also home to a growing number of Fralin Biomedical Research Institute faculty focused on cancer research.

Balancing the responsibilities of a principal investigator while operating a business is daunting, but Lamouille is grateful for the opportunity. “It is exciting to contribute to both sectors, industry and academia,” he said. “Not everybody has the opportunity to do this. I feel privileged that I can participate in research and train students at Virginia Tech, while also knowing I am developing a therapeutic to help patients in the clinic simultaneously.”

This story by Aaron Golden is part of a series written by Virginia Tech undergraduate students who studied science communication and administration as part of a summer fellowship at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC in Roanoke.