Noxopharm (ASX:NOX) has reported new preclinical data demonstrating the potential of its cancer-fighting technology, showing that it can initiate an immune response against normally "immune-silent" cellular ribonucleic acid (RNA).

Earlier this year, Noxopharm and its collaborators published research in Nature Immunology detailing how this immune-silencing RNA works to limit immune system activation. The research team also identified a method to counter this effect by enhancing the activity of Toll-like receptor 8 (TLR8), a critical sensor that enables the immune system to recognize potential threats. TLR8 is one of more than a dozen Toll-like receptors that serve as first responders in the innate immune system, detecting molecular patterns associated with pathogens and cellular damage.

In the latest study, Noxopharm's oligonucleotides — short synthetic RNA sequences — enabled the immune system to detect and respond to cellular RNA that would ordinarily go unnoticed. The company believes this breakthrough could open the door to a novel class of cancer treatment designed to work alongside existing therapies such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy, helping the immune system mount a more effective anti-cancer response. This approach addresses a longstanding challenge in oncology: many tumors are considered immunologically "cold," meaning they fail to provoke a sufficient immune response, limiting the effectiveness of existing immunotherapies.

Researchers tested the immune response to cellular RNA containing immune-silencing RNA both in vitro with and without one of Noxopharm's TLR8-amplifying oligonucleotides. As anticipated, the RNA alone did not activate a TLR8-driven immune response. However, when combined with the TLR8-amplifying oligonucleotide, the same RNA triggered a robust TLR8-mediated immune response that exceeded fourfold the level observed in untreated cells.

The new findings highlight the potential of Noxopharm's TLR8-potentiating oligonucleotide strategy to unmask cancer RNA to immune cells and trigger immune activation. The data remain at the preclinical stage, and further studies, including animal models and eventual human trials, would be needed to determine whether the effect translates into clinical benefit.

The study was conducted in collaboration with the Hudson Institute of Medical Research, Noxopharm's key strategic partner in the development of the Sofra technology platform.

Noxopharm CEO Dr Olivier Laczka said the company is encouraged by the new findings, noting that they significantly broaden the potential applications of its TLR8-potentiating technology.

"We have now shown that the technology enables TLR8 activation in response to the sensing of RNA, which has potentially significant benefits given that cancer patients around the world are already being treated with cancer cell-killing therapeutics," he said.

"There is an elegant scientific symmetry across our pipeline. In oncology, our TLR8-potentiating oligonucleotides seek to enhance immune recognition of RNA released following cancer cell death."

"In autoimmune disease, our inhibitory oligonucleotides are designed to suppress inappropriate immune activation driven by self-RNA. Together, these programs demonstrate our ability to modulate the same innate immune pathway in opposite directions to address very different diseases."

Prior to market open, NOX was steady at 7.9 cents with a market capitalization of $24.27 million.